Learning To Accept
by FaceWithTheView
Summary: Just my PyroOC that's been floating around in my head... All reviews and criticisms are encouraged, please! Chapter 38 is up!
1. The Danger Room

A/N I'm switching up the museum field trip and Logan's return.

Chapter 1

The Danger Room

I pushed my sweaty blonde hair out of my eyes and quickly rolled over to the side as a flaming car door landed two feet away from my head. I feel static coursing through my hands as I turned and shocked its source. My nemesis responded with a string of curses and the other door a few moments later.

I moved quickly behind a building. I knew I was no match for fire.

We're playing boys against girls today, which kinda sucks, because the boys' gifts are more varied among them, giving them a definite advantage. It's Jubes, Kitty, Rogue, Storm, Jean and myself, against Bobby, John, Piotr, Logan and Scott.

Speaking of advantages, we have two teachers on their team. They only have one. Well, officially anyway.

Being students, we tend to go overboard on each other and sometimes, really hurt each other, like the time we did levels against levels and Jubes got a concussion from running headfirst into Piotr.

I saw a tornado pop up as Storm launched an attack at Logan, who couldn't do anything except good-naturedly tackle her.

I turned around to see one of the car doors from before now frozen from Bobby and in the hands of Piotr, a.k.a. Colossus.

He's gonna throw that at me, I thought tiredly.

The boys tend to work better together than the girls do.

I saw John run towards me and I pushed myself into the air.

"I don't wanna get into this with you-" I started, the energy and anger coursing through me, to my hands.

I didn't get to finish, as I saw John flick out his Zippo and launch a fireball towards me this time. I lost my footing in the air and crashed into a car parked below me. I heard a funny crunch in my rib region.

"Motherf-"

I rolled off the car onto the ground and landed next to an overturned trashcan. I saw John running over towards me to finish me off.

I stood up and pumped a few volts into him, smiling as he convulsed. It's not enough to kill him, of course.

But that didn't seem matter to our teachers.

Logan and Storm ran over to us, Storm yelled at me to stop as she ran over to assess John's damage. Logan grabbed me by the arms and pinned me to his chest so I couldn't do anything except zap his thighs, and Crispy Logan isn't an episode I personally wished to revisit.

Scott came over, and the wreckage melted away, the robotic voice intoning, "Danger Room Session Complete."

Scott looked at John, and said, "You're a slow learner."

Kitty walked over and gave me a look that clearly said, "This again?"

Logan set me down and spun me around to face him.

"You can't do that, kid. We've gone over this-"

"Logan! He launched a freaking fireball at me! What was I supposed to do, turn into Anna, Human Toast Extraordinaire?" I shouted.

Logan made a sound that was a cross between a groan and a growl, and said, "No, you coulda let him hit you and not hit back. But you hit back, so guess where you're headed again? C'mon, guess for me. You're a smart kid."

"Detention."

"Can't hear ya."

"DETENTION."

"Oh, did you say 'detention'? Uh… yeah, sounds about right."

I stomped off, cursing, following my classmate towards the locker rooms.


	2. My Stupid Tragic Past, Laugh With Me Now

Chapter 2

My Stupid Tragic Past, Laugh With Me Now, I Can't Hear You…

My name is Anna Stewart. I am 5'6, my hair is currently blonde with red steaks, I have green eyes and I'm seventeen years old. Oh yeah, I can shoot lightening out of my hands.

Normal teenage stuff.

I grew up with my mom and my stepfather, Frank. My father died when I was two in from a brain tumor. Frank was one of those stereotypical sexually abusive stepfathers, where even when I did tell my mom, she sided with him, not me, the blood relation.

They found out when I was eleven, dumped me in a foster home a week later, and after I shocked some kid and a volunteer or two a few times, got kicked out of there as well.

Kicked out of there and into Xavier's School For Gifted Youngsters.

We, the students, call it Mutant High, which is much more fitting, considering what we are.

I was a little late to the classroom. I had to go to Dr. Grey first so she could bandage up my ribs after hitting the car.

I looked at Marie, a.k.a. Rogue, who could drain me of my memories, mutation and potentially kill me, if she were just to touch me for any longer than about ten seconds.

She's sitting next to her boyfriend, Bobby, a.k.a. Iceman, a.k.a. a lot of other things we called him, among them being Popsicle and Ice Queen.

He hates that.

Jubilee is sitting in the front with Kitty. Jubilee can shoot fireworks out of her hands, while Kitty is able to phase through things.

Piotr is sitting behind Bobby. We call him Colossus, because in addition to being over six feet tall and two hundred pounds, he has the ability to cover his body with an organic metal.

John, a.k.a. Pyro, is in the back, sulking as usual.

Guess what his mutation is.

And no, being a smart aleck isn't a mutation, and if it is, I've got something else, and so does he.

Our teachers walk in, accompanied by Professor X and Dr. Jean Grey, both of whom are telepaths. Dr. Grey is also telekinetic.

"Alright, who can tell me what went wrong in the Danger Room… today?" Scott asked us wearily.

No one said anything.

"John launched a fireball at me?" I ventured, leaning back in my chair, crossing my arms over my chest.

I heard John snort from his place at the back of the room.

"It's funny, John?" Storm asked him, rubbing her temples. Logan leaned back against the wall and said something under his breath.

"Yeah, that she's playing victim. What happened after I did that, huh? Anyone see that?" John snapped.

"I hit you back." I said easily.

"Anna… what are the rules of engagement?" Scott asked me.

"Never settle for the cheapest ring?" I responded, propping my legs up on the desk. There was no use in answering his question correctly, since I already knew what was coming.

"You both have detention in here tomorrow while the rest of us are in the Danger Room." Dr. Grey told us.

"Big surprise." John retorted.

"Can it." Logan snapped, and I grinned, appreciating Canada for once.


	3. The Joys Of MSN Messenger

Chapter 3

The Joys Of MSN Messenger

I walked back to the dorm Kitty and I shared in a rather bad mood. This was my fourth detention in the last six months, and I was prettymad about it.

"Why couldn't they just make us stay home from the field trip?" I complained to Kitty as I flipped open my laptop.

"Maybe they think if they lock you in a room alone with John enough, you guys'll snap and kill each other, and then they won't have to give you detention anymore, since you both don't seem to learn." Kitty responded.

"Who asked you?" I snapped irritably, opening MSN Messenger.

"Uh… you did." Kitty told me with a grin.

"Shut up."

I watched as my screen name popped up (Snootch) and my Buddy List after it.

-Rogue- (offline)

-Shadow- (offline)

-Jubes- (busy)

-Bobby- (away)

-Piotr- (offline)

-Zippo- (online)

-SNIKT- (offline)

-Storm- (busy)

-Scott- (offline)

-Jean- (away)

-Professor X- (offline)

I went to sign out when I saw that the only person on was John, when a message popped up.

Zippo says:

Happy?

I stared at the screen for a second, and then typed back.

Snootch says:

Screw you, you flamer.

Zippo says:

You'd like that, wouldn't you?

I signed off.

"Anyone on?" Kitty enquired, closing her Algebra II book.

"No one that mattered." I said, flopping onto my bed, wincing as my ribs hit the mattress and stared at the ceiling.

It was quiet for about ten minutes, before Kitty asked me if I wanted to go to the Commons with her for a while. I didn't have anything else to do, so I followed her out the door.


	4. BS!

Chapter 4

BS!

Kitty and I walked downstairs to the Commons. Kitty needed help with her Algebra II, and she was looking for Piotr to help her.

Bobby and Rogue were sitting by the fireplace with a deck of cards.

"Anna!"

I trotted over.

"You wanna play BS? We can't do it with two people." Bobby told me.

"Sure." I responded, and sat down across from Bobby.

He dealt the cards out to us and we started in.

"So… what happened in the Danger Room exactly?" Bobby asked.

"John hit me first and I retaliated, and I'm sorry I did. Simple as that. Did he give you a different story?" I asked.

Bobby didn't answer.

And I knew I'd hit the nail on the head.

It's easy to play with Bobby, because he tries too hard to sound convincing. It's even easier to play with Rogue, because she won't look me in the eye when she's bluffing.

We were about to start our second game, when I heard the familiar sound of a lighter clicking open and shut.

I groaned inwardly and willed myself invisible.

It didn't work.

"You guys playin' BS?" John asked Bobby.

"Yup. You wanna play?" Bobby offered.

"I'll play next round."

I glanced at Rogue, who mouthed, "Sorry" to me.

I jerked my head towards Bobby, and mouthed back, "Dense as a post".

John sat down next to me and didn't look me in the eye.

We started our second game. I was finding it hard to concentrate with John's lighter clicking next to me every five seconds. I actually counted during Bobby's turn.

"John, I swear to God I will jam that thing up your nose if you don't knock it off." I said quietly, studying my cards.

"Shut up." John told me pleasantly.

"I told you that everyone gets annoyed with that damn thing." Rogue told him.

It was quiet for a few minutes, and then it started again.

Click.

Snap.

Click.

Snap.

Click.

Snap.

I reached over to grab his lighter, but he was faster and he grabbed my wrist.

"Let go, asshole." I snapped, staring at him.

"Make me."

"Frank, please don't do this." I pleaded. I sounded pathetic.

"John, knock it off." Bobby said.

I threw down my cards and jerked my wrist away simultaneously. With my ex-card hand, I backhanded him and stood up.

"I'm out guys, sorry." I said to Bobby and Rogue.

"YOU ARE A FUCKING BITCH!" John yelled, reaching up to touch his cheek.

"Get used to it." I said, walking away.

I walked over to Kitty, who was staring at me.

"I'm going to the room. Please don't get me for dinner." I said.

I hadn't realized John had followed me and was now leaning against the doorway, blocking it.

"Get out of my way." I snapped, trying to push past him.

"What's the magic word?"

"Why do you do this to me? You are an insufferable bastard." I whispered.

I shot bolts onto the floor and lifted myself over him.

"Forgot about that, didn't you?" I called back, pushing the call button for the elevator.

"No." he said, storming over to me.

The elevator opened and I stepped in.

"I'll see you tomorrow, John." I said, as the doors closed and John disappeared.


	5. Canadian Heart To Heart

Chapter 5

Canadian Heart To Heart

I went up a floor and knocked on Logan's door.

"Logan, please open up!" I said, rapping on the door.

"What?" he growled, swinging the door open.

I walked past him and flopped onto his bed.

"You okay?" he asked.

"Logan, do I have to go to detention? John hates me." I whined, burying my face in a pillow.

"You got yourself into this, of course you have to go." Logan responded.

I sighed dramatically and sat up.

"Besides, I don't think John hates you. I think he's a kid with a lot of issues and maybe you should try talking to him." Logan continued.

I stared at him.

"What, are you some kind of fucking diplomat now?" I asked sarcastically.

"No, but maybe if you can figure why it is you two don't get along, you'll stop ending up in detention with him." Logan responded.

"Maybe I'll stop ending up in detention when he stops trying to set me on fire." I shot back. "What do I look like, Oprah?"

"No, you're not fat and black. And you haven't given us all cars." Logan shot back.

"Dr. Phil?"

"Nope, you're not a fat guy with a beer gut, receding hairline and a twangy accent."

"Maury Povich?"

"You wanna talk about hairlines? That guy doesn't even have one anymore. He's, like, seventy years old."

"And you're not?"

"Watch it."

"Sorry."

A pause.

And then-

"Jerry Springer?"

"Maybe." Logan replied with a grin, dodging the pillow.

"Asshole."

Logan glanced at the clock on his nightstand. It read 6:24.

"Time for dinner."

"I'm not hungry. I'll see you tomorrow." I responded, standing up and heading towards the door.

"You gonna try to talk to John?" Logan asked, standing in the doorway.

"I guess. I don't think it will really change anything, though."

"Do it. For me." Logan said, giving me a sad face. He looked adorable, and I couldn't say no.

"Okay, okay. Jesus." I muttered, closing the door behind me.

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Whadja think? R & R!


	6. Detention

I wanted to thank all of my reviewers... so... Thank you! 

smearedliner- Thank you for all the reviews... I wanted to let you know that I am in love with your story, Arson. I'm definately hoping for a makeout sceneto come soon!

The Green Bird- Yes, I totally understand what you mean about Logan's smile. He's definately cuddly in a lethal way. I also realized that he is empathetic with John, so thank you for noticing.

MG- I've been updating... I hope you like it!

fallen angel- I'm updating!

BlackFlame418- I hope you like what I'm posting...

Here's Chapter 6! ------x------x-------x------x------

Chapter 6 Detention

The next day, at 12:00 sharp, I found myself waiting outside the classroom, waiting for it to be unlocked. John was nowhere in sight. I figured he'd be late, as usual.  
I couldn't figure out what I was supposed to say to him. I'd thought about it all night, and I still had nothing. I heard heels clicking down the hall, and I saw Dr. Grey hurrying over with a key.  
"Sorry I'm late." Jean apologized, unlocking the door. "Where's John"  
I shrugged. "He hasn't shown up yet"  
She sighed. "That boy is so irresponsible"  
I walked into the classroom and sat down in the back. Jean shook her head and motioned me up front.  
I groaned and slid my aching body out of the desk.  
The door swung open and John sauntered in. There was a small cut of his cheek.  
"What happened to your cheek?" Jean asked him.  
"I bit myself shaving." John responded.  
"Okay, John, be that way. You guys know the rules by now, and if you don't, congratulations, you're most likely deaf. You can work on homework, you can study, you can figure out why you can't seem to get along with each other, you can whatever. No sleeping, fighting, no power usage of any kind, no electronics of any kind. Anna, I'll take your iPod now. John, your lighter"  
"Jean…" I protested weakly, pulling my iPod out of my pocket. She used her mind and transferred it to her hand, along with John's lighter.  
"You guys are in here until 5:00. Have fun." she said, and she left the room, locking the door behind her.  
I groaned and lay my head down on the desk. I still had no idea what I was supposed to say to John.  
"Why do you hate me, John?" I asked abruptly, the words seemingly spilling out of my mouth.  
"Who said I hate you?" John shot back.  
"You make it pretty clear." I said, picking my head up to look at him. "But did I ever say, 'I hate you, Anna Stewart, I'm going to run you over with a truck when you least expect it'?" he asked me pointedly.  
"No, but"  
"Then I don't"  
"John, the first time I met you, you were rude to me"  
"Was I? I don't remember"  
"Yes, you do. I walked down into the Commons and you said, 'Nice butt.'" I recalled.  
"So what? I wasn't being rude to you. I was stating facts." he said coolly, meeting my eyes.  
"John, we were twelve years old. Not exactly called for. Besides, I have no butt now, I had none then." I snapped.  
"So it was an icebreaker then." he countered.  
"You are utterly impossible, do you realize that?" I asked incredulously.  
"All part of the Allerdyce charm, babe"  
"You're full of"  
"Hey, you heard Jean. No fighting"  
"I'm not. I'm stating facts. Sound familiar?" I shot back.  
"Can't say that it does." John replied, yawning.  
"Whatever"  
I pulled out my Chemistry book and started working on a problem Scott had assigned. I hated Chemistry. At the moment, I hated Scott. I could care less about atoms and chemical properties.  
I pulled out my pencil and started copying down equations.  
27) Given that the mass of one molecule is 1, what it the mass of 5/69th of one molecule?  
"Summers, I'm gonna murder you when I get out of here." I muttered, pulling my scrunchie out of my hair and shaking it loose. I'd left my calculator in my dorm, and I knew there was no way I could go get it.  
"John, do you have a calculator?" I asked curtly, looking over to him, where I saw paper footballs littering the tiled floor.  
"For what? You working on Summers' homework?" he asked, interested.  
"Yeah. I can't figure out 27 and I left my calculator on my bed"  
"Along with your dignity, obviously"  
"What the hell does that mean"  
"You're asking me for something. I think that's kinda funny. That's all." he said serenely, flicking a football at Toto, the classroom skeleton.  
"John, I'm tired of you hating me, and I at least wanna be civil while I'm locked in here with you"  
"I told you. I don't hate you"  
"Do you have a calculator on you or not?" I asked, pushing my hair out of my eyes.  
"How much is it worth to you"  
"My grade. I failed the last test." I told him.  
He pulled a calculator out of his pocket and tossed it to me. I caught in single handedly and went to figuring out the problem.  
"You goin' on the field trip tomorrow?" John asked, flicking another football at Toto, hitting him in the femur.  
"We all are. Aren't you thrilled?" I responded absently, atoms dancing through my head.  
"It's fabulous. I think I'm going to buy a snow globe from the gift shop." he said sarcastically.  
We sat in silence again for a while.  
"You think Jean would notice if"  
"Yes. I already thought about it"  
"Where are we going again? Natural History Museum"  
"Yeah. We're supposed to use it as an opportunity not to light normal people on fire." I teased, walking over with the calculator.  
"That was one time, like, 3 years ago." John protested as I set the calculator down on his desk.  
"That was, like, 3 weeks ago." I reminded him.  
"Whatever. I'm a guy, it's not like I actually own a calendar. Bobby does, but I don't. I think Bobby's has kittens and fuzzy shit on it"  
"Kittens and fuzzy shit?" I repeated, raising an eyebrow.  
"You know, like baby animals. I think this month is a baby giraffe." "You're kidding me"  
"Nope"  
"Yes, you are. Bobby doesn't have a baby giraffe calendar"  
"I'm not kidding you, but speaking of which, I wanted to apologize for yesterday evening"  
"What?" I asked. Was John Allerdyce actually apologizing for something?  
"I'm sorry I called you a fucking bitch"  
"Sorry for hitting you, even though you deserved it"  
John smirked and I sat down on top of the desk next to his.  
"So… this is weird. We're being civil to each other." John said thoughtfully.  
"Yeah. Well, I just wanted to thank you for letting me use your calculator. I know you probably have work of your own to do"  
"Nope"  
"What do you mean, 'Nope'? You have the same classes as me"  
"And Bobby." John finished with a cocky grin.  
I raised an eyebrow at him.  
"Bobby's not too good about putting homework and notes away"  
"But he's obviously good about picking out calendars." I pointed out sarcastically.  
"Alright, come with me after we get out of here. I'll show you"  
"If you hate this calendar so much, why don't you buy a new one?" I suggested.  
"Have you ever seen a guy buy a calendar"  
"Um… I don't think so." I admitted.  
"Guys don't buy calendars. We buy food, particularly anything with the names Hostess, Lays or Postopia attached. And power tools." he added as an afterthought.  
"So the next time we all go shopping, you'll buy Twinkies and a belt sander"  
"Ding-Dongs and an electric saw… whatever I feel like eating and destroying the packaging of." John explained nonchalantly. "What do girls buy"  
"Kittens and fuzzy shit." I replied.  
It was John's turn to raise both eyebrows.

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Whadja think? R & R!


	7. The Lair

Chapter 7

The Lair

After Jean set John and I free, I went with him up to the dorm he and Bobby shared. Sure enough, there was a calendar with a picture of a baby giraffe, just as promised.

"I don't believe this." I breathed, before collapsing onto John's bed in a fit of giggles.

"I think it's a gift from Rogue, actually. I can't believe he hung it up though. He's so whipped." John laughed, waving his lighter near the giraffe.

"Don't hurt it, it's just a baby." I laughed, shocking him in the butt.

"Ow! What was that for ,woman?"

"How nice of you to notice. So this is The Lair?" I said, looking around John's half of the room. It was a typical guy's room, posters of bands covering the walls, unmade bed, clothes hanging off the fan, and food wrappers on the desk where homework was absent.

"The Lair? Is that what you call it?" John asked ruefully, shoving some socks into a drawer.

"Lairs are where the bad guys live." I teased, my eyes sweeping Bobby's side of the room. Clothes were inside the dresser, whether they were folded or not was an entirely different story. His bed was made, and his homework sat on his desk. I walked over to look at it.

"How can you even read this?" I asked, wrinkling up my nose as I tried to decipher Bobby's chicken scratch.

"He's been my roommate for four years. It's easy." John said, coming over. "See, that's an 'e', that's an 'r'-" he showed me, pointing at the different characters from over my shoulder. I realized John was a little too close to me and I walked around him and sat down on his bed.

"What's that?" I asked pointing to a funny looking scribble.

"27."

"He got it wrong, don't copy his."

"How 'bout yours?"

"What's it worth to you?"

"My grade?"

"Bull. I'll give it to you for a dollar." I negotiated.

"That's robbery."

"Do you want me to give it to you or not?" I asked.

"Well, in that context, that could mean-"

"IT DOESN'T!" I shouted, shocking him again.

"OW!"

"I'm not here for favors, John." I said sternly.

"Ok, Jesus. Sorry. I was joking, okay?"

I glanced at the clock. 5:54.

"I'm gonna go back to my room and change my bandages, okay? I'll see you at dinner." I said.

"What bandages?"

"The ones for my ribs after hitting a car trying to escape a fireball." I replied airily.

"Oh. Sorry." John said sheepishly.

John got the door for me, and closed it as I exited.

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Whadja think? R & R!


	8. Dinner

Ok, everyone seemed to like the last two chapters. Especially the thing with the belt sander, which made Lothlome laugh her ass off.

Yes, the fuzzy shit calendar was a gift, by the way.

On to the chappie!

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Chapter 8

Dinner

I finished wrapping my bandages around my ribcage awkwardly, with a little help from Kitty.

"So… how was detention?" she asked.

"It was good. John and I were nice to each other."

"John Allerdyce? Nice?"

"I think he's just cocky about some stuff. He's actually not a bad person."

"I thought you hated his guts."

"Did I ever say, "I hate John Allerdyce, I'm going to run him over with a truck when he least expects it'?"

"Yes. On multiple occasions." Kitty reminded me.

"Well, I think John and I connected today, on some weird level. I think everything is gonna be okay from now on."

"Okay…" Kitty trailed off.

"What?" I asked sharply, raising an eyebrow.

"Nothing. You ready for dinner?" Kitty asked.

We made our way down the stairs into the dining room and I sat down between Kitty and Rogue.

"What's for dinner?" I asked Rogue.

She shrugged. "How was detention?"

"Fine. We're both still alive, aren't we?"

"Yeah, that's a bit unexpected." she said playfully.

Dinner was spaghetti and meatballs. It's always funny to watch the younger ones try to manage this sort of meal, since it's so messy.

After dinner, it was me and Kitty's night to clear the tables and load the dishwasher. I started bringing over plates and cups to Kitty, where she would load them into the dishwasher. I started with the younger kids table first, and worked my way to the teachers, and then ours.

I grabbed Bobby and John's plates and napkins, when I noticed scribbling on one.

_Anna,_

_Meet me in the Commons for a BS rematch._

_-John_

I shook my head, pocketed the note, and finished the dishes.

"Kitty, I'm going to the Commons. You coming with?" I asked, toweling off a bowl and stacking it in the cupboard.

"Yeah, sure. I think Jubes rented _Sin City_, so we're gonna watch that."

"That's an awesome movie. Elijah Wood gets his-"

"Don't tell me!" she yelled, covering her ears. "La la la la, I can't hear you!"

"Fine." I consented, hitting her in the butt with a dishtowel.

"Ow! Why're you in such a good mood?" she complained.

"No reason."

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Whadja think? R & R!


	9. Alliances Over Jammed Guns

Chapter 9

In Which Alliances Are Established Over Jammed Guns

Kitty and I walked into the Commons together. Jubes ran up to us excitedly.

"_Sin City_! Whaddaya think of that?" she asked Kitty cockily.

"How'd you get that?" I asked.

"Logan. He's such a pushover." Jubes explained.

"You've got that right. I can't even count the movies I've swindled into him renting for me over the past few years." I said with a grin. "I'll see you guys later, I have some ass to kick."

I walked over to John and Bobby, where they were sitting in their usual spot near the fireplace.

"You got my note?" John asked.

"I got _a_ note." I replied, brandishing it.

"Nope, not mine." John said, studying it thoughtfully.

"Then I guess I'll go watch _Sin City_ with Kitty and Jubes-"

"Sit down."

I sat down across from John and Bobby.

"We're waiting on Rogue." Bobby said, after I asked his why he wasn't dealing.

Rogue walked over.

"Speak of the devil." I teased. She sat down next to me and punched me in the shoulder playfully with a leather-clad hand.

Bobby began to deal the cards. They cards were cold, and I realized, duh, of course they were. Bobby's skin was colder than mine, considering his gift. I wondered what John's skin felt like, compared to mine… was it hotter…? I shook myself out of my daydream, and I could feel a blush staining my cheeks.

"You okay?" Rogue asked me, looking amused.

"Huh?"

"You're bright red. You look like a tomato." Bobby said ruefully. (Tone: This is a school.)

I gave him the finger. "I'm fine."

We started to play. As I mentioned before, Bobby and Rogue are easy to play with. But John was different. His face had hardened, and he looked like he wasn't having any fun.

"John?" I said, nudging him in the knee. "You look like you're passing a stone."

"This is my poker face."

"Okay…" Bobby said dubiously, amusement gracing his angelic features. Bobby has always reminded me of some kind of boy band reject. He has big blue eyes, spiky blonde hair and natural good looks.

John is the complete opposite.

John reminds me of John Bender, from one of my favorite movies, _The Breakfast Club_. He's got dark brown hair, grey/blue eyes, and he usually has a cocky sneer on his face, "the trademark Allerdyce", he calls it. He's handsome, but not in the traditional sense. He's one of those guys the parents in some Lifetime movie warn their daughter about. Like in _A Walk To Remember_. It's the fact that you can't get near him that makes you want him, and it's something that always bothered me, ever since the day I met him.

He's closed off, too, a trait he shares with me and does not realize.

I know my reason for being detached from people sometimes, but his is unknown to me. He never talks about his family-

"Anna." Rogue interrupted, waving a hand in my face. "Your turn."

"What number are we on?" I asked, embarrassed that I hadn't been paying attention.

"7." John answered.

I glanced through my cards, and pulled out two sevens and laid them on the pile.

"Two sevens." I announced.

"BS!" Bobby said triumphantly.

I grinned.

"Knock yourself out, Popsicle!" I said.

Bobby's expression of happiness turned into one of depression after he picked up the cards.

"I hate this game." he whined.

"Quit whinin', Iceballs." John grinned, throwing down some eights.

"It's Iceman." Bobby corrected angrily.

"Bobby, chill out. It was just a joke." Rogue said, smiling.

"Isn't anyone on my side?" Bobby complained.

"As of this very moment, no." I said, smiling.

"I am, Bobby." Rogue said.

"You don't count." John pointed out. "You're his girlfriend."

John won the game a few hands later, and Bobby and Rogue headed up to Rogue's room.

"Early day tomorrow." I reminded them as they walked out of the Commons. "Don't stay up too late."

I walked over to the couch and sat down. _Sin City_ was only halfway over, and it was my favorite part: when Benicio Del Toro doesn't realize his gun is jammed, and still doesn't realize, even as it's jammed into his forehead.

Kitty looked sicker than a dog.

"You're the one who wanted to see this movie." I reminded her.

"Well, I regret it."

"You are a blood lightweight." I teased as she stood up shakily.

"I'm going to the room. Don't tell me how it ends. I'll try it again some other time." she instructed sternly, despite her green complexion.

"Alright, Kitty Cat. G'night." I called as she disappeared through the wall.

"I can't take this." Jubes moaned. "I'm going with Kitty."

"You guys are weak!" I called gleefully.

Rogue and I were the only girls in the entire school who could stomach this kind of a film.

John flopped down next to me on the couch.

"This is the best part." he commented, his eyes lighting up as Benicio's gun lodged itself into his forehead.

"I like the part where Mickey Rourke turns Elijah Wood into wolf bait."

"Yeah, well, I like the part with Rosario Dawson." he countered.

"You would, wouldn't you?"

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?"

"Her whole outfit could fit in my pocket." I pointed out.

"So?"

"And she's, like, Queen of the ."

"So?"

"You're a guy, John. It's simple as that." I said, hugging a pillow to my chest.

"Whatever."

"That was good, John. You should go on tour."

"Maybe I will."

"You do that." I said, laughing.

Why hadn't I noticed that John wasn't a bad person sooner? I was smiling, and that was something I never do, I realized.

I noticed John had draped his arm across the back of the couch, and it reminded me of that stupid scene in _Grease_.

"So… we're good? No more fighting?" John asked me tentatively.

"Yes sir." I answered absentmindedly, watching Clive Owen get sucked into a tar pit.

We were quiet for a few minutes. I looked around and realized it was only John and I. I looked at the clock and it read 11:58 P.M.

"Anna, can I ask you something?" John asked quietly.

"Yeah?" I responded, turning and looking at him.

"Yesterday, when I grabbed your wrist, you turned white and then you called me Frank."

I felt my stomach drop and I felt bile rising in my throat.

"No… I didn't." I protested. "I… I don't even know anyone named Frank."

"I'm not gonna push you about it. I just wanted to let you know. If you want to talk about it-"

"I don't." I whispered, standing up. "I'm going to sleep."

"'Night." John said halfheartedly.

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Whadja think? R & R!


	10. Road Trip

Well… you guys seem to like it. Thank you for all the positive reviews so far, they are like drugs for the ego. sheepish grin. Anyway, we're coming up to the food court scene.

Hope you enjoy!

3

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Chapter 10

Road Trip

The next morning, Kitty and I woke up at about 8:00 to get dressed. I pulled on a pair of jeans and my _American Psycho_ t-shirt and headed downstairs to the buses.

There were two buses waiting by the gates. Logan was driving one, Scott, the other.

I climbed onto Logan's bus and sat in the back with Rogue.

We were just about to pull out when I saw two figures making a mad dash for our bus. Logan threw the doors open and Bobby and John climbed in.

"I shoulda left you two." Logan said sharply.

"Sorry." Bobby said guiltily, shooting John a look.

"Forgot my lighter." John explained with a grin.

"We're going to the Natural History Museum, not a camping trip." Logan said.

Bobby and John made their way back to Rogue and I, stumbling as Logan flew around a corner onto a main road.

"Lighter?" I asked suspiciously, raising my eyebrows.

"Okay, okay. We slept a little late." Bobby said.

"What's 'a little late'?" Rogue questioned.

"8:50." Bobby said

"How is it that guys can wake up ten minutes before we're supposed to leave and look great, and if we did that, we'd look like Brides of Frankenstein?" I complained.

"'Cause girls get too hung up on their appearances. Nice shirt, by the way" John said.

"So me and Rogue should just do without makeup and brushing our hair tomorrow?" I asked them.

"No!" they both said quickly.

"Oh. Okay. If you really feel that way…" Rogue said, looking at me with a grin on her face.

"No!" they said again. Bobby gave Rogue his big blue puppy dog eyes, and she consented. I said I wouldn't, merely because I can't live without eyeliner.

We pulled into the parking lot about fifteen minutes later. As we filed off the buses, Storm was giving us an overview of what we'd be doing, so, naturally, we didn't listen, just nodded where it was appropriate and said yes and no. It's a handy little technique I picked up from Logan.

We went inside, and the first thing to our left was an information board plastered in articles about the 'Mutant Phenomenon'. I glanced at it, but didn't read into it, since it looked like a bunch of editorials about the Mutant Registration Act from a few years ago, some stuff on ex-senator Kelly, and some other dull political bits and pieces.

Storm and Logan went to the left of the food court, while Jean and Scott went to the right. I glanced at Rogue, and I saw Bobby and John exchanging similar glances.

As soon as our teachers were out of sight, so were we.

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Whadja think? R & R!


	11. A Slow, Tumor Ridden Death

No, I don't write that fast, I transfer my story between two computers. I'm usually up up until 2 in the morning writing.

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Chapter 11

A Slow, Tumor-Ridden Death, Not Courtesy Of John Allerdyce

The four of us grabbed a table and sat down.

"I think they do this field trip every year." I said, stretching out my legs.

"Yeah… we're in New York and they can't find anywhere else to bring us… it's kinda sad." Rogue agreed.

"Maybe we could go to Broadway next year!" John exclaimed sarcastically, pulling his lighter out of his pocket.

"That'd be awesome! I can't wait for all the plays to be made into movies." I commented.

"Yeah, that's just what I need. Do you guys know that she can recite _RENT_ from start to finish? I do, because she's done it a million times." Rogue told the boys.

"And when did you first discover that you had no life, Anna?" John asked me in a cheesy voice, holding an invisible microphone to my lips.

"That would be the same day I met you, John." I countered, smiling.

"Oh, BURN! You want some ice for that?" Bobby laughed.

"That was pretty clever, Bobby. You get a team of scientists to help you come up with that?" John asked him.

If you didn't know John and Bobby were best friends, you'd never know it by the way they talked to each other.

John was flipping his lighter open and shut.

"John, you're a walking hazard." I informed him.

"I left my gun license at home."

"Gun license? What- no, John, don't do it." Rogue pleaded.

John didn't listen, just kissed his biceps and exclaimed, "A license for these guns!"

"Wow, John. You're a living, breathing arsenal." I said in mock astonishment.

"You love 'em." he informed me cheekily.

"You caught me. I actually have pictures of your 'guns' hanging over my bed, just so I can fall asleep easier at night." I told him, with a sigh.

"Really?"

"Nope."

"Tease."

Click.

Snap.

Click.

Snap.

"John, you're gonna get us kicked outta here if you keep playing with that thing." Bobby said.

"No I won't. Nobody's paying attention-"

"You gotta light?"

I turned around and saw two guys standing behind me, staring at John.

"Nope." he said coolly, flipping his lighter shut.

"Why're you being such a dick?" one whined.

"Yeah, why're you being such a dick?" the other one repeated.

"Because I can." John responded, flicking the lighter open again.

"I'm gonna ask you one last time. Got a light?" the bigger one growled at John.

"Sorry, guys. Besides the fact that this is clearly marked as a non-smoking environment, I couldn't bear knowing that I contributed to your slow, tumor-ridden death." John said innocently, snapping his lighter shut again.

The guy reached around me and snatched John's lighter from his left hand.

John stood up immediately. "Give that back." he demanded.

The guy laughed, lighting up a Marlboro cigarette. "Not so tough without your lighter, huh?"

"Piss off. Give me the lighter before I de-ball you." I said, holding my hand out.

"What the hell could you possibly do to me?" the guy sneered, his face in mine. He smelled like smoke and cheap alcohol, a scent that reminded me of Frank.

I backed up near where John was. I saw John wink and watched in astonishment as the lit end of the cigarette exploded, sparks igniting the kid's jacket.

"John!" I shouted, punching him in the arm.

John just laughed as the guy fell to the floor and screamed, rolling around like a fish.

Bobby stood up and sent a stream of ice to the kid. Everyone in the food court was staring at us. I rubbed my temples and shot John a nasty look.

Suddenly, everybody froze. Everybody except us four. John looked at the kid on the ground and wiggled his fingers in front of his face.

"Bobby?" Rogue said.

"It wasn't me."

"It was me."

I turned around and saw Professor X in his wheelchair. Behind him were all of our teachers.

He looked at John sternly.

"Next time you feel like showing off, don't."

Suddenly, a sound in the quiet room caught his attention. We followed his gaze to a mounted television, where an image of the White House surrounded by army troops and the words, "MUTANT ASSASSINATION ATTEMPT."

"...coming to you live from Washington with reports of an assassination attempt on the President, which took place in the Oval Office less than an hour ago. Details are still sketchy, but we do know that the President is alive and uninjured...While an official description has not been released; several eyewitnesses have claimed the assassin was a mutant. The suspect is still at large and is considered armed and dangerous..."

"Professor, I think it's time to go." Scott said worriedly, looking around.

"I think you're right."

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Whadja think? R & R!


	12. A Sensitive Little Region

Chapter 12

A Sensitive Little Region

The bus ride home was dead silent. John hadn't really gotten in trouble, which was surprising. Logan just told him to watch his step.

I woke up as we rolled up to the gates of the mansion and unpeeled myself from the sticky vinyl seats.

We filed off the bus and made our way up to our rooms.

John caught my arm near the stairs.

"De-ball?" he remarked questioningly.

"Yeah… from what I've heard, it's a sensitive little region." I said innocently.

"Maybe for Bobby it's 'a sensitive little region'. Not me, though." John said with a smirk.

"Wonderful. That was great. Maybe I could go up to your room and you could explain that one to me. Maybe you could even show me. Oh, John, would you?" I suggested sarcastically.

"Really?" John asked, raising his eyebrows.

I pretended to think about it.

"Mmm… No."

"You're a total ball buster." John complained.

"I try. I'll see you later." I said, heading up the stairs.

"If you change your mind-" he called after me.

"I'm the first in line, honey I'm still free, take a chance on me!" I sang back.

"What?" he yelled, obviously confused.

"If you need me, let me know, gonna be around, if you got no place to go when you're feelin' down." I sang louder from my place at the top of the stairs.

"You're a psychopath!" John informed me.

"A psychopath that's not going back to your Lair tonight!" I countered triumphantly, unlocking my door and heading in, greeting Kitty, who was sitting on her bed and staring at me with a weird expression.

"Were you just singing _Mamma Mia_ while ascending the stairs?" she asked, cocking her head at me.

"Nope."

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Whadja think? R & R!


	13. No Authority

Chapter 13

No Authority

The house was virtually absent of authority that evening. The Professor had managed to pick up the mutant from the White House attack, and Storm and Jean had taken the jet, the _Blackbird_, to go pick up said mutant. Professor and Scott had gone to pay Magneto a visit in plastic prison, so the only adult at the mansion with us that evening was Logan.

Like I said, the house was virtually absent of authority.

After dinner, I went up to my room to work on homework. Kitty was out by the pool with Jubes, so I had the room to myself. I showered and didn't bother to blow dry my hair, since I would just straighten it in the morning. No one knew I had wavy hair, because I never wore it like that. I changed into my pajamas, a black camisole and matching boy shorts and sat down at my desk.

I was really glad Scott was gone, because I was seriously thinking about stabbing him in the leg with the letter opener that lay on my desk. I never got letters; I just liked the one I saw in the catalogue from _Batman Begins_ that looked like Bruce Wayne's samurai sword and bought it.

I gave up on it around 11:30 and decided to head downstairs to go get some ice cream. I pulled a robe over my pajamas, because my top was kind of revealing, and locked the door.

I entered the kitchen and saw Bobby sitting on a stool at the counter, already eating my ice cream.

"You're gonna share that with me." I said, pulling a spoon out of the silverware drawer.

"Sure." Bobby responded.

"It wasn't a question." I said, grinning, pulling up a stool across from him.

Logan walked in and looked at us. "Doesn't anyone sleep in this school?" he asked.

"Apparently not." Bobby answered though a mouthful of chocolate chip cookie dough.

"You guys got any beer?" he asked, opening the refrigerator.

"This is a school." Bobby pointed out.

"So that's a no?"

"Yeah, that's a no."

"Got anything besides chocolate milk?"

"There should be some soda in that small cupboard." Bobby said, gesturing with his spoon.

Logan pulled one out and lifted it to his lips, then looked at Bobby. He handed it to him. Bobby blew on it and handed it back, frost covered.

"Thanks." Logan said.

"No problem."

We continued in silence for a few minutes, before Logan said, "So… you and Rogue, huh?"

"What? Oh, yeah… It's not what you think. I mean, I'd like it to be… It's just that it's not easy- when you want to be closer to someone, but… you can't be." Bobby said quietly.

I stood up and tossed my spoon into the sink and retied my robe.

"I'm gonna go to-"

Logan waved his hand frantically, silencing me. He crept out the door quietly, leaving me and Bobby confused.

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Whadja think? R & R!


	14. Under Attack!

Chapter 14

Under Attack

I leaned against the wall, waiting for Logan to come back. Bobby was putting the ice cream back in the freezer, when I noticed a shadow behind him, a shadow with a rifle.

"BOBBY, GET DOWN!" I screamed, diving for him.

We fell behind the counter and the figure closed in on us. Everything from training left my brain and I stared at the soldier. It was a U.S. Military Soldier.

I summoned up my energy and shocked him, harder than I had ever shocked anyone before. I watched in horror as the man shuddered and fell to the floor.

I was suddenly very aware of the sounds of our breathing that filled the room.

It was deafening.

I stared at my hands and flinched as a body flew over the countertop and crashed into the wall behind us.

I heard the familiar SNIKT sound and saw Logan standing in the doorway.

"Let's go." he instructed tersely.

We moved into the hall after him, but Logan pushed us back.

"Wait. Stay here." he said, running after some soldiers.

Bobby and I exchanged glances and ran across the hall to an elevator.

We got in and the doors closed.

"What the hell is going on?" I asked frantically. I was shaking violently, my teeth chattering.

"I have no idea."

The elevator opened and we stepped out. I could hear helicopters outside. Bobby and I ran to the left, fighting against a wave of terrified students.

"JOHN!" I heard Bobby shout.

I turned and saw John behind us.

"WHERE'S ROGUE?" Bobby asked frantically, grabbing his roommate by the shoulders.

John looked around. "I dunno, man." he said apologetically.

"I gotta find her." Bobby said desperately, running down the hall towards her room. John and I ran after him as fast as we could.

We rounded the corner and saw Rogue ushering some smaller kids into a secret passage.

"ROGUE!" Bobby shouted. We ran to meet her.

"This way!" she instructed, pointing to the wall panel the younger kids had disappeared through.

A helicopter spotlight filled the bay window at the end of the hall, briefly silhouetting two soldiers swinging in front of it, attaching small grenades to the edges.

"No…" I whispered, staring at the window, knowing what would happen in a few seconds.

John grabbed my arm and yanked me to the floor next to him just as the window exploded. Shards of glass hit my back and legs. I picked my head up to see the soldiers swing through the debris and land where the window used to be.

We turned and ran down a nearby flight of stairs. Rogue stared in horror and I recognized one of the soldiers, the one I had killed. I stopped and stared at the man, wondering if he had a family… a wife… maybe even children…

John jolted me out of my reverie by grabbing my wrist forcefully and pulling me down the hall after him.

Four more soldiers burst through the front door, guns raised.

We were trapped.

Suddenly, a primal scream echoed from above. We looked up just as Logan leapt off the balcony; his adamantium claws bared and muscular arms spread wide. He stabbed his claws mercilessly through two soldiers, pinning them to the floor. Before the other two could even fire, Logan quickly jammed his claws into their legs and flipped them onto their backs.

"Let's go." Logan said.

A helicopter spotlight shone through the front door. We could hear the sound of more troops approaching. We turned and ran down a main hallway. We rounded a corner and John opened up a secret passage and we headed inside. I could feel blood running down my legs. I looked like some kind of victim of the Marquis de Sade, with the robe, blood, wet hair and moonlight. No, not the Marquis de Sade, I realized, I probably looked like the chick that doesn't get killed in a bad slasher movie because she's a vir gin.

Great, I thought sarcastically. That's just friggin' peachy.

Logan told us to go ahead.

We looked at him like he was crazy.

"I'll be fine." he assured us.

The passage door shut, leaving the four of us in the dark.

John flicked out his lighter and I could see a little bit better. I examined my legs, which didn't look as bad as they felt. There were still some pieces of glass lodged in my calves. I bent over and yanked them out as quickly as I could, stifling the scream. My wounds were bleeding much more freely now, John observed tactlessly, and I wanted to punch him in the balls.

Bobby went to grab Rogue, but stopped short, realizing he couldn't. I pulled off my robe and tossed it to Rogue. She thanked me with her eyes and started to follow Bobby, but stopped after a few steps.

"Wait. We've got to do something. They're going to kill him. Bobby, please!" she said worriedly.

"You two stay here." Bobby instructed, sounding terrified.

John and I stood stock-still and waited.

"Logan, come on." I heard Rogue beg.

"Go, I'll be fine." Logan said. I could hear something in the back of voice, but couldn't identify the emotion that it was attached to.

"But we won't. Please." Rogue pleaded.

After a moment, Logan appeared and we took off down the dimly lit passage. We came to an intersection. We ran down the passageway on the right and it led us to the garage entrance.

The lights turned on to reveal about a dozen expensive looking cars and a few motorcycles.

We piled into a sports car. Rogue took shotgun. John, me, and Bobby filed into the backseat.

"Logan, this is Scott's car." John said with a smirk.

"Wanna bet?"

SNIKT!

Logan hotwired the car and the garage opened. We sped out, leaving the mansion behind us.


	15. On The Road Again

Chapter 15

On The Road Again

Logan was driving fast, agitated and preoccupied. John was fiddling with his lighter on my right hand side, while Bobby was tapping his fingers on his knee on my left. I was literally in a state of mental shock. I couldn't think. I didn't know what had happened. All I could see was the soldier lying on the ground, lifeless. I had killed someone without even thinking. My mind began to clear up a little bit, and I watched Rogue hand Logan a chain with a dog tag on it.

"Here. It's yours." she said quietly, dropping it in his hand quickly, to avoid contact.

"What the hell happened back there? Who was that?" John asked, clicking his lighter frantically.

"Stryker...His name is Stryker." Logan said quietly.

"Who is he?" Rogue asked.

"I don't remember." Logan answered.

"So, I'm thinking Scott's not gonna like blood all over the Italian leather interior of his Mazda X-5." John said after a few minutes of uncomfortable silence, looking down at my bare legs.

"It's not like she's doing it on purpose." Bobby said, sighing.

John leaned over me and reached over to the front of the car.

"I don't like uncomfortable silences." he explained, fiddling with the stereo. He hit a button and NSYNC came blaring out of the speakers. We all winced simultaneously. I went to cover my ears, but the motion set my skin on fire. I stifled a moan and slowly lowered my hands back to my lap and stared at the ceiling of the car.

"Scott listens to NSYNC?" Logan remarked.

"I'm not sure if I should be more disturbed at the fact that he has an NSYNC CD or that you recognize it." John said to Logan, snapping his lighter, the emblazoned shark glinting at me in the moonlight.

John pushed another button and a little metallic disk slid out of the dashboard.

"I don't think that's the CD player." John said slowly.

"Brilliant, John." Rogue said sarcastically.

Logan took it from John and pocketed it.

"So where are we going?" Bobby asked.

"Storm and Jean are in Boston. We'll head that way." Logan decided aloud.

"My parents live in Boston." Bobby said quietly.

"Good." Logan said.

Click.

Snap.

Click.

Snap.

"John, please stop that." I asked quietly, clutching my head. I felt funny. My head was swimming.

"Headache?" Bobby asked, looking at me, and I could see evident concern in his blue eyes.

"I feel funny." I said slowly.

John glanced over at me, reached over, and plucked something small out of my shoulder.

He held out a tranquilizer dart with a crack in the side, where I could see the liquid dripping out onto the floor, mixed with my blood.

I stared at it for a moment.

"How are you…" Bobby started to say, before completely fading away.

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Whadja think? R & R!


	16. Not Minding

A/N This was absolutely one of my favorite chapters to write to far… I really hope you enjoy!

Chapter 16

Not Minding

John's POV

Anna stared at Bobby for a second, before turning to look at the dart I was holding. Her eyes fluttered shut and then she slumped over.

"John, grab her." Bobby instructed.

"I got her." I answered, putting my arm around her shoulders so she didn't hurt her neck.

Her head was resting on my right shoulder and her hand was resting on my knee, which I didn't mind much.

She sighed and buried her face in my neck, which I also didn't mind. I'm a guy… what? Like I'm gonna complain.

I'm not a pervert. I'm a regular 18-year-old guy. Nothing else to it. Yes, I know I have hormones, but I wasn't about to jump her in the backseat of a car just because she was beautiful and smelled good and was completely within my-

I'm not a pervert.

I dropped my hand from her shoulders and curled it around her waist, pulling her a little closer to me. Her breathing was steady, and I figured that was a good sign. Her skin, however, was cold, and I tugged her skimpy shirt over the exposed skin of her waist and placed my hand back where it had been.

"Logan?" I said questioningly.

"She'll be fine. She'll be up in a few hours. Just keep her still." he instructed, eyes on the road.

The hand that was resting on my knee contracted a little bit and fell into place again.

"Logan? Is that supposed to happen? You know, spasms?" I asked worriedly. I didn't want her to wake up suddenly and hit me. I didn't put her hand there.

"She's fine, kid. Go to sleep."

I glanced at the clock on the dashboard. It read 1:12 A.M. in bright green LED lights.

I rested my chin against the crown of her head. Her hair was still damp from showering a few hours ago, and it smelled like Love Spell, which smelled really good. Like peaches and something else that smelled totally sexy. All guys like that smell, and all girls know it. It's practically been scientifically proven. I read it in _FHM_.

I looked down at the unconscious girl in my arms.

Not exactly the way I wanted to start my relationship with Anna Stewart.

But I didn't mind.

End John's POV

Whaddya think? Was John OOC? Please let me know... I was REALLY nervous about posting this one, even though I love it.


	17. WalMart

Chapter 17

WalMart

The next morning, I woke up with my face buried in someone's neck and shoulder. For once, I didn't mind or have a panic attack, because the person was warm and I was freezing cold, and for some reason, I felt I could trust whoever it was. I opened my eyes and saw that John had wrapped his arm around my waist with his hand resting on my hip and I was not doing anything to resist him. My right hand was resting rather intimately on his thigh. I jerked it away quickly and readjusted myself gently and carefully, so I didn't wake him up.

I closed my eyes again and tried to go back to sleep against John, but I couldn't. The situation itself was too bizarre for me to wrap my brain around completely. I mean, John and I had been figuratively at each other's throats a few days ago, and now we were, literally.

"How ya feelin'?" Logan asked.

"I feel a little fuzzy, but other than that…" I trailed off, glancing out the window at the trees that zipped by on the side of the road.

"You took one look at that tranquilizer dart after John yanked it out of you and collapsed." Bobby informed me, yawning.

I rubbed my eyes and adjusted my camisole. John's hand twitched a little, and I sat up so he could move it.

He opened his eyes blearily.

"You make a good pillow." I informed him, yawning.

"Not too bad yourself, angel face." he responded drowsily. He didn't pull his arm back, so I leaned on it again shyly.

"We're gonna stop soon, 'cause you guys need clothes. There's a WalMart in about five miles. I found about two hundred fifty dollars in the glove compartment." Logan said.

"We'll be recognized, Logan." I pointed out, pulling my hair out from between John's shoulder and the seat.

"You three don't stick out as much as me an' Rogue. I'll drop you three off and go get gas and get you guys afterwards." Logan told us.

"Can we go to, like, a Starbucks or something? I need caffeine really badly." John said, swiping his dark brown hair out of his eyes irritably.

"I agree with John." I piped in.

"If we see a place, we'll stop." Logan said.

We pulled up to the sidewalk outside of WalMart. We filed out the back. I stood, blinking at the sun, which had absolutely no business being so fucking cheerful so early in the fucking morning.

Rogue handed my robe back to me through the window, and she and Logan took off towards a gas station across the street.

"We look like a bunch of runaways from some kind of underground teenage brothel." I noted aloud, glancing at our attire and physical states.

"Brothel?" John asked questioningly.

"Like you don't know what that is." Bobby said cynically.

"A whorehouse, John. A brothel is a whorehouse." I explained, laughing, walking through the automatic doors behind him.

"Well, say whorehouse next time." John told me, earning a disapproving glare from the greeter.

"Smile. It says so on your sticker." John said cheerfully to him.

"Don't mind him, he hasn't had his meds yet." Bobby whispered to the man sympathetically.

"Both of you, shut up, please." I groaned, grabbing two carts, shoving one over to where John was examining the newest DVD releases.

"Meet back here in twenty minutes." I said, walking off towards the Juniors Department.

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Whadja think? R & R!


	18. Check Out

Chapter 18

Checkout

I stood at the front of the store, waiting for the boys. I had grabbed some clothes and shoes that would fit Rogue and I. No doubt the boys were in the electronics section playing the Crash Bandicoot demo.

They finally came up, and to my utter disbelief, they were arguing between two DVDs.

I glared at them and Bobby took them both back to electronics where they belonged.

"John, we don't need candy. It's 8:30 in the morning." I moaned, as John reached around me and browsed through the candy section.

"It's never too early for candy." he informed me seriously, tossing a few colorful bags onto the clothes he and Bobby had amassed.

"Whatever." I said, throwing our stuff onto the moving counter.

The cashier rang it up and informed us our total was $89.54. I pulled the cash out of the waistband of my shorts and handed it to her.

"Nice pocket." John smirked, as we waited at the front for Bobby to rejoin our party.

"Yeah, well, I though about stuffing it down my cleavage, but I figured that would probably complete the image and part of me appearing to be a teenage prostitute." I shrugged, pushing my hair out of my eyes.

"What's this about cleavage and teenage prostitutes?" Bobby asked curiously, coming up behind us, sans DVDs.

"We were talking about stuffing money down Anna's cleavage. And then turning her into a teenage prostitute." John explained happily,

"Mind out of the gutter. Cleavage. Whatever." I instructed, spotting Scott's car speeding towards us.

"You started it." John protested childishly.

"And I'm finishing it." I snapped, climbing into the car behind him, considering shocking him in the ass just for the hell of it.

I decided against it, remembering last night, and sat the rest of the trip in silence between the two boys, with John contentedly flicking his lighter open and shut, and Bobby acting as a human Mapquest for Logan, so we could get to his house.

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Whadja think? R & R!


	19. The Mother's Day Card

A/N I am so so so so so sorry I haven't updated in forever. I was grounded. Stupid parents. Anyway, here it is!

Chapter 19

The Mother's Day Card

Ten miles and no Starbucks later, we pulled up to Bobby's house. It was elegant and pleasant looking from where I was sitting in the backseat. Logan parked on the street and we hopped out and walked towards the front door.

"They're at a hotel. Ronnie has a football game tonight in the next county, so they'll be back tomorrow morning." Bobby informed us, reaching up and grabbing a key from the top of the doorjamb and opening the front door.

"There are two bathrooms, if you guys wanna go change. I'll use my room. John, don't burn anything." Bobby said, showing us the facilities.

John just smirked.

Rogue and I sat down on the stairs and divvied up the clothing amongst us, and then took turns getting dressed in the downstairs backroom.

The boys were dressed almost immediately, big surprise.

I walked down the hall and felt a pang of jealousy as I looked at the family pictures that lined the walls. Holiday cards sat on a wooden table by the stairs and I picked one up.

It was a Mother's Day card, signed by Robert.

Tears filled my eyes as I stared at it angrily for a few seconds and put it back down on the table next to some others.

"You okay?"

I turned around and saw John leaning against the wall, in his typical bad boy stance, lighter in one hand.

"Yeah… I'm feeling a lot better." I said hurriedly, wiping my eyes quickly, moving to walk past him.

"I'm not talking about that." John said, pushing himself off the wall and beginning to walk towards me.

"I'm fine." I said as firmly as I could, pushing away more tears.

"No, you're not." He put both his hands on my shoulders. I looked down, not wanting to meet his intense gaze.

"What are you, John? Some kind of a fucking psychologist?" I snapped, staring at my feet.

"No, but you have the same expression on your face and tone that I use when I think of my alcoholic, sonofabitch father." John explained evenly, picking up my chin.

I looked up at him, and I saw sadness in his dark eyes. I didn't know what to say to him- Hey, this is great, and I know someone who has horrible family issues too! Wanna go talk about our feelings and hug stuffed animals together?

"John…" I trailed off. He was still holding my chin, and even though he was being exceedingly gentle, I could feel the familiar, rising panic in my stomach that directly resulted from when people touched me sometimes. I pulled my face away from his hand and leaned back against the stairs, trying to understand what John had just revealed to me and why he had done so.

Bobby walked down the hall. "I was looking for you guys. You want something to eat?" he asked, clearly oblivious to the fact that something serious was being discussed prior to his arrival.

"I'm not hungry." I said, as my stomach inconveniently growled that I was lying through my teeth. "Is there somewhere I could lie down?"

"You can use the guest room. It's the second door on the left up the stairs." Bobby said.

"Thanks. I'll see you guys later." I said as cheerfully as I could manage, and I dashed up the stairs without looking back at John.

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Whadja think? R & R!


	20. Naptime With Tolkien

Chapter 20

Naptime With Tolkien

I followed Bobby's directions and found the guest room without a problem. I left the door cracked and sprawled myself out on the king sized bed. I wanted to cover my head and forget everything that had happened in the last twelve hours. I knew I couldn't run away from it. I sat up on the bed and stared at my hands again. I still hadn't been able to come to terms with the facts that I had killed someone, and I didn't feel like trying right now.

I looked around the room. There were two alcoves with windows overlooking the backyard. The bed was between them. There was a closet and a dresser, some picture frames on the otherwise naked walls, and a shelving unit filled with all sorts of books.

I walked over to the shelves, nearly tripping over a cat that was sleeping next to the bed. I swore quietly and began to search through the books.

I finally found what I was looking for- _The Fellowship of the Ring_, by J.R.R. Tolkien. I carefully pulled it out from its place between _The Hobbit_ and _The Two Towers_, stepped over the cat, and sat back down on the bed.

I let the familiar words wash over me in a cathartic wave. It had been one of my favorite books, ever since I was ten. I used it to escape from Frank, and lose myself in a world of hobbits and elves.

I propped myself up on my elbows and allowed myself to once more be consumed by Tolkien's imagination.

I could feel my eyes drifting shut, and before I knew it, I was dreaming of Fangorn Forest and Rohan.


	21. Please Talk To Me

A/N- I love writing from John's POV, so here's another one. I hope you like!

P.S. School is starting on August 3rd for me, so updates will be slower, as I am grounded during the week. Don't ask. I will try to write during the week and post on the weekends. Don't lose faith!

Chapter 21

Please Talk To Me

John's POV

I had gone with Bobby and eaten a bag of Doritos or something to please him, but he and Rogue quickly disappeared afterwards to do God only knows what and God only knows how. I took my leave and quietly went up the stairs, following Bobby's directions to the guest room.

The door was cracked and I poked my head in.

Anna was sound asleep, clutching a book protectively to her chest. A purring cat was kneading her leg.

I sat down on the bed, and upon closer examination, I found that she was reading _The Fellowship of the Ring_.

I leaned over her and brushed her hair out of her face.

She looked really peaceful.

And then she grabbed my wrist rather painfully, digging her nails into the skin.

"Jesus, what the hell?" I shouted, pulling my arm out of her grip.

"John?" she said sleepily, her eyes focusing on mine. She sat up abruptly, scaring the cat. It scampered away and jumped onto a windowsill.

"What were you doing?" she asked suspiciously.

"You think every time someone touches you, they're gonna jump you?" I spat, rubbing my wrist irritably.

"I have good reason to do so." she said in a voice that was deadly calm. I figured if she wanted to explain that, she would. I hadn't figured out anything about 'Frank', but I suspected he had something to do with her wariness and distrust of people, guys in particular.

"I just came upstairs to check up on you. It's almost 4:00." I said, watching her closely.

She ran a hand through her blonde hair and lay back down on the pillows, throwing an arm over her eyes.

"Oh no you don't. You're coming with me and you are going to eat something. Bobby said the last thing you ate was chocolate chip cookie dough ice cream with him at midnight last night, and I don't feel like having you pass out. Again." I told her, reaching for her wrist, and then thinking better of it.

She groaned and sat up, and reluctantly followed me out the door, down the stairs, into the kitchen.

She opened the pantry and pulled out a box of PopTarts, brought them over to the table, and sat down across from me.

"You know, it's not exactly my fault I passed out last night." she said grumpily, violently tearing open the foil around the pastries. "And I'm sorry, killing someone really takes the edge off an appetite. How was I supposed to know?" she laughed bitterly, throwing her hands up over her head.

I raised an eyebrow. "You killed someone?"

"Yeah, some soldier last night. He tried to shoot Bobby-"

"You did what you had to. Don't think about it." I said casually, reaching over and breaking off a corner of her PopTart.

"John, it's not that easy. I know you're only trying to help, but it's hard to understand if you haven't killed someone yourself. I scared myself. I did it without thinking. Everything from training and the Danger Room literally disappeared, and all I could think of after I did it was if he had a family that he wouldn't be going home to because of what I did."

Anna's green eyes were filled with tears and she rubbed her eyes angrily. I realized that she hated crying in front of people.

She dropped the PopTart onto the table, picked up the box, pushed herself out of the chair and walked over to the pantry.

I stood up and followed her to the pantry. She slammed the door shut and turned right into me. I grabbed her shoulders to steady her.

I held her forearms gently and looked her in the eyes. "Please just talk to me." I said softly.

She regarded me for a moment, her eyes darting around the kitchen, and I knew she was looking for a way out.

"Tonight." she said to me before she pulled out of my grasp.

"What does that mean?" I asked.

"It means I'll talk to you tonight." she said in a tight voice.

"I'm sorry, I wasn't trying to force you-" I stammered, hating myself for making her upset.

"John, you think I'd do something if I didn't want to?" she asked, giving me a watery smile, before heading into the living room. "I need to talk to someone. And I think you're that someone."

End John's POV

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Whadja think? R & R!


	22. Logan Finds Out His Advice Worked

A/N- School starts so early for me because I live in Florida. We get out May 28th, so there's a pain in the butt. Anyway, this is just fluff, but I like it. I hope you enjoy!

Chapter 22

Logan Finds Out His Advice Worked

I took the canned ravioli out of the microwave and spooned it onto five plates. I felt like making dinner, even if it was from a can. I left it on the counter and went to go find Logan.

I had already told Logan about Frank, a few months after I had first met him. He's one of those people you feel you can open up to, even if you haven't known him for a very long time. Despite his wild appearance, he's a good, dependable guy, and sometimes, a surprisingly good listener.

I was nervous of talking with John, truthfully. I didn't know why, but there was something about him that drew me to him and pushed me away from him at the same exact time.

I found Logan sitting on the couch, fiddling with the disk that had popped out of the dashboard last night.

"You figure out how to work that thing?" I asked, sitting down next to him and peering over at it.

"No. There aren't any damn buttons on it or anything." Logan growled, poking at it.

"You'll figure it out." I reassured him, standing up. "Do you know where John is?"

"Why? I thought you two hated each other." Logan reminded me, raising an eyebrow.

"I took your advice."

"And?"

"And… you were right." I said grudgingly.

"What?"

"I said, you were right." I repeated, a smile creeping onto his face.

"One more time-"

"I'm gonna kick you in your adamantium crotch." I threatened, stalking out of the room.

I heard him laugh, and then resume swearing at the disk.

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Whadja think? R & R!


	23. RRated Movies and Ravioli

A/N- Thanks everyone for all the reviews. I'm almost at 7000 hits. Grassy ass! Especially to Lothlome, The Green Bird and MG for all their tips, help and encouragement. Happy ficcing!

Chapter 23

Ravioli and R-Rated Movies

I found Rogue, Bobby and John in the den, watching TV. I sat down on the couch next to where John was sprawled out.

"I made a few cans of ravioli. They're on plates on the kitchen counter." I said, trying to push John's legs out of the way. When he didn't move, I sat on his legs. He let out a yelp of pain and moved his legs.

"Thought you'd come around." I said, grabbing the remote away from him.

"Hey! I was watching that!" he whined, making a swipe for the remote.

"We're not watching _Beevis and Butthead_." I said firmly, switching around until I found CineMax.

"I'm not watching a chick flick." he warned.

"Neither am I." I said, as the ending credits for _Life of Brian _rolled down the screen.

Bobby and Rogue came back a few minutes later with plates of ravioli.

"You're a great cook." Bobby told me.

"Yeah, no one can use a can opener like you." Rogue added, laughing.

"I try." I said modestly.

"What're we watching?" Bobby asked, sitting on a cushion.

"_Life of Brian _just ended. Ooh… _Dogma_!" John said cheerfully, flipping over to STARZ.

"Dude… I love this movie!" Bobby exclaimed.

"Yeah… it pretty much dismisses everything that was drilled into our brains from birth from the Church." I said sarcastically through a mouthful of processed noodles and meat. Nevertheless, it was one of my favorite movies, since I had given up on God long ago, around age 6 to be exact, when my mom first brought Frank home.

"There's only, like twenty minutes left." Rogue pointed out.

"I'm gonna go upstairs and get ready for bed. I'll be down in a few minutes." I said, rising from the couch.

John caught up with me near the stairs.

"I thought we were gonna talk." he reminded me.

"We are, but we're not gonna just go up to my room. That'd raise a few eyebrows. We'll wait until Bobby and Rogue disappear. And Logan sleeps like a ton of bricks." I explained. "There's a method to my madness, John."

He shrugged and walked back to the den.

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Whadja think? R & R!


	24. John's Story

A/N- So I may have taken liberties with John's backstory. Sue me. I love him.Anyway, I'm working my arse off to crank out chappies, because Lothlome won't quit bitching at me for it. With that said, I hope you enjoy!

Chapter 24

John's Story

I changed into the black camisole and boy shorts I had worn the night before after I had taken a quick shower in the adjoining bathroom. I had stolen some of Mrs. Drake's shampoo and it smelled like apples. It wasn't my thing, but since clean hair did happen to be my thing, I used it.

I threw the towel in the hamper in Bobby's room and looked around. There were skateboarding posters all over the walls. I shook my head ruefully and headed out the door.

I walked down the stairs and back into the living room, where the ending credits for _Dogma_ were finishing. I sat back down on the couch next to John, who had apparently showered and changed into a pair of sleep pants while I was gone.

"Where's Bobby and Rogue?" I asked, knowing the answer.

"They went upstairs after they did the dishes together." John answered, making a face.

"Did you want to do the dishes?" I asked pointedly, turning around to face him.

"No."

"Then quit bitching." I replied, taking his hand in mine and leading him to the stairs.

"Where are we going?" he asked.

"The guest room." I replied, suddenly very aware of how much bigger his hands were than mine.

I opened the door quietly and closed it behind John. I flopped down on the bed next to him on my stomach.

"Do you want to start or should I?" he asked seriously.

"We could flip a coin."

"Then I'll start." he said, with resolve.

"I was born in Melbourne, Australia. I lived there until I was eleven. My father, who I mentioned before, was, or is, I dunno if he's kicked off yet, a heavy alcoholic. He beat my mom and I if we so much as left a sock lying on the floor. One day, he was beating her, and he just snapped her neck. Right in front of me. And he went right back to watching his rugby match.

"I called the police and they showed up almost immediately after I picked up the phone. He was taken away and I was placed in a foster home in Sydney. When the trials were finally over, I went back to living with him. He had somehow been able to convince the jury she had fallen down the stairs. He beat me even worse, because I had called the cops.

"He was beating me one day when I was about eleven. His cigar was lying in an ashtray, still smoking. A spark caught my eye, and I felt drawn to it. And then… his shirt just caught on fire. He just stared at me, and for the first time ever, I saw fear in that sonofabitch's eyes, and I knew I had put it there. And it felt good. I won't lie. It felt so good. It was this overwhelming sense of power… control, I guess. And I wanted more. I wanted so much more. And I wanted to try it again. To make him pay for everything he'd done to my mother and I.

"But he left the house the next morning, and that was the last time I ever saw him. He left a note on the refrigerator that said he'd come back when I was gone.

"The next day, I got a letter that said 'Dear Mr. Allerdyce, I am pleased to tell you that Charles Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters has extended an invitation to you. We invite you to come up to our New York campus and have a look around. Please send the RSVP form as soon as possible to notify us of your arrival date. Housing and meals shall be provided for you. Congratulations again on your invitation. We look forward to seeing you soon. Sincerely, Professor Charles Xavier.'

"I was so excited. I couldn't believe there were other people like me in the world. I wrote back, accepting it. And then, the day after that, Storm rang the doorbell, helped me pack my stuff, and I never returned home."

I regarded him for a minute. He had a grim smile on his face, but I could see sadness in his eyes.

"John… I'm so sorry." I said softly, reaching out to touch his hand. He gripped my hand, and we sat like that for a minute or two. He looked up into my eyes, brown meeting green.

And for the first time in my life, I knew there was someone like me. I knew how John had felt when he'd received that letter.

"Your turn." John said quietly.

I took a deep breath.

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Haha, cliffhanger. Muahahahaha! Review, por favor? I want to know if I was too mean to John. I don't want to hurt him to much. Hes my fuckpuppet. Wow. Lothlome says I'm insane. Am I?


	25. Anna's Story

A/N- All right, like I said, school starts for me on Thursday, so I will not be able to update daily anymore, as I am grounded off the computer during the week. However, I have a laptop in my room that is to be used for homewor, which is whereI actually write this, then tranfer it to my family computer that has internet accessAnd a huge collection of floppy disks, so you can definitely expect at least one update every weekend. Please don't lose faith in me, you are who make me fic! I hope you enjoy, this chappie in particular was a bitch.

Chapter 25

Anna's Story

"I was born in Albany. When I was two, my father died of a brain tumor. I didn't really understand what she meant, because death is so hard to comprehend at that age.

"Not even a year after his death, she began dating again. She'd leave me home alone constantly. She'd bring a new guy home almost every week. Some of them were rich, some of them were this, some of them were that, whatever. This pattern continued for about three more years before she brought home Frank." I said in a rush, standing up and beginning to pace the Berber carpet.

"She said he was special, that he was "The One". That I was going to have a daddy again. But I didn't want a new daddy. I didn't like Frank. He was big and menacing, but my mother couldn't see that. He looked at me funny, but I didn't tell her, because she seemed so happy.

"They got married about three months later.

"I was six or seven when he started coming into my room at night. At first, he'd just sit in the rocking chair that my daddy had built for me when I was first born and watch me. My mother said it was sweet that he wanted to spend time with me. I thought it was scary. He moved from the rocking chair to my bed. I'd pretend to sleep, but somehow, he knew I was faking it. He'd stroke my back sometimes, and my mother said that was sweet too. I knew something was wrong.

"I was eight when he first touched me. I had learned about what to do in school. I was supposed to tell an adult I trusted. So I went to my mother and I told her that I didn't like the way Frank was touching me. She did nothing.

"It got worse. He told me if I told my mother, she wouldn't love me anymore. I stopped saying my prayers at night, because in my eight-year-old mind, they were useless. I gave up on God entirely when I was nine. I told my mother again and she called me a lying whore. I didn't even know what that meant, but I figured it was bad, since she backhanded me out of my chair.

"The age of ten passed with Frank still doing things to my body. I learned to make myself numb to him and what he did to me. For a while, that worked. But the anger and the fear began to creep back in, and being numb ceased to work."

I took a deep breath. I couldn't bring myself to look at John I was so ashamed.

"One night, when I was eleven, he came into my room. I was so angry, so tired of it all, just being hurt and lied to… that when he sat down next to me, my mutation manifested itself for the first time and I electrocuted him. I didn't kill him, but he was badly shaken. He told my mother that I was a mutant, and they kicked me out of the house. I took my piggy bank, which had a grand total of $127.64, the teddy bear my daddy gave me when I was born, and a picture of he and I.

"I was in a foster home after that, but I got mad at some kid and shocked him. Then I ran away.

"Logan was the one who brought me to the Professor. I was walking somewhere in the city, and I saw him, and for some reason, instead of being afraid, I went over to him. I sat down next to him on a park bench, and some guy tried to mug him. I saw his claws and thought maybe he could help me. He drove me to the mansion, but he didn't come in with me. He said he'd see me again some day.

"I didn't see him again until the day he showed up with Rogue. I was elated beyond all words, because I hadn't seen him in three years…" I trailed off.

I looked up at John.

He was staring at me in disbelief.

"So, now you know why I called you Frank." I said quietly, sitting down in the alcove, looking at the trees in the backyard.

"Because I grabbed your wrist."

"Yeah. I'm sorry, John. I just… I didn't see you. I saw him, and I got scared." I tried to explain. I knew it sounded stupid, but that was what had happened.

He didn't say anything.

"I guess you think I'm completely fucked up now." I said quietly, focusing on a leaf that fluttered past the window.

"Why would I think that?"

"Because of what I let Frank do to me." I said, frustrated, glaring at him.

Boys can be so fucking dense; it's like they need EVERYTHING spelled out for them all the time.

John stood up abruptly and walked over to me.

"You didn't 'let' him do it. Don't you dare blame yourself for what that worthless piece of shit did to you. It's not your fault." John said firmly. "I did the same thing when I first got here. I blamed myself."

"Why did you stop? Blaming yourself, I mean." I asked, brushing a piece of lint off my shorts.

"Because I finally realized that I couldn't change anything about it." John said bitterly, crossing his arms over his bare chest.

I stared at him for a minute.

I stood up off the cushion I was sitting on next to the window and sat back down on the bed.

"John-" I started.

"Listen, don't you dare pity me. I hate when people do that. Storm and Jean did that when I first got here and I wanted to shoot them." he interrupted defensively.

"I wasn't going to, John. I wanted to say thank you." I explained shyly, uncrossing and recrossing my legs Indian style.

John sat down next to me on the bed again.

"I want to show you something." I said suddenly.

I pulled down the top of my camisole a little bit so John could see the scar on the top of my breast.

"He did that to you?" John asked, sucking in a sharp breath.

"With the edge of my mother's curling iron." I explained, quickly readjusting my camisole.

"I…" he trailed off.

For the first time in all the five years I had known John Allerdyce, he was speechless.

"I don't even know why I showed you, it was stupid of me." I apologized, putting my hands over my face.

"Hey, hey, chill out. It's okay." he coaxed gently, putting a tentative hand on my shoulder.

"You're saying that because you got a free show." I pointed out, lying back on the bed.

"Hey, I'm not a complete dick." he argued.

"I know, but still." I said, propping myself up on my elbows.

"I am not run solely by my penis, Anna, hard as it may seem for you to believe." he insisted.

"Whatever." I said, glancing at the clock, which read 12:43 A.M.

He followed my gaze.

"Shit, it's late." he said bluntly. "I'm gonna head downstairs to the couch." he said, standing up.

"John, wait." I said.

He stopped halfway to the door.

"Would you sleep with me tonight?" I asked, and then quickly realizing how that sounded as John cocked an eyebrow. "Not like sleep with me sleep with me. Just stay with me." I explained hurriedly.

"Why?" he asked, sitting back down on the bed.

"Because I felt safe with you last night in the car." I said truthfully.

"Really?"

"Yeah." I said, smiling.

"Alright, but keep your hands to yourself."

"Fuck you, Allerdyce." I said good naturedly as he lay down beside me.

"If that's what you really want me to do-" he started, before I elbowed him in the ribs.

"John, I'll de-ball you in your sleep." I said, as I lay my head on his chest.

He smelled really good, stupid as it may sound to even think. But I didn't care. I felt happy, and I was just about to drift off when I felt John gently kiss my lips.

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A/N- I did it! They had physical contact that didn't involve trying to hurt each other or tranqs!

Whadja think? R & R! Was it too MSish?


	26. I Think She's Talking About Us'

A/N- I know it's short, but I thought it was funny.

Chapter 26

"I Think She's Talking About Us"

"BOBBY!" was the first thing I heard when I woke up. I buried my face in John's neck and tried to block out the shouting, but it didn't work. I sat up and untangled my legs from John's and tried to shake him awake.

He mumbled something that sounded like, "Who put the earmuffs on the cookie?"

"John, wake up. I think Bobby's family is home." I said frantically, shaking him harder.

The door swung open.

"…AND ON TOP OF NOT GIVING US ANY CALLS FOR OVER A MONTH, THE GUEST ROOM HAS TWO HALF NAKED TEENAGERS CAVORTING IN THE BED!" An angry woman, who I guessed was Bobby's mom, was screaming across the house from the doorway.

"I think she's talking about us." John said with a wicked smirk.

I rolled out of bed, grabbed some clothes and walked past her to the bathroom, past a younger looking version of Bobby, who I assumed was Ronnie.

John did the same, with a bright, "Good morning" to our hostess, and a clap on the back to Ronnie, leaving them both stunned in his wake.

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Whadja think? R & R!


	27. Bobby Comes Out

A/N- This will probably be the last chappie until this weekend. I hope you enjoy! Wish me luck as a junior. Holy shit, I'm gonna be a junior.

Chapter 27

Bobby Comes Out

After about fifteen minutes of utter chaos, we found ourselves fully dressed downstairs in the living room.

Bobby's mom, brother and father sat on one couch. Rogue and Bobby sat on the other. Logan was leaning against the doorframe. John was leaning against the coffee table, and I, much to Mrs. Drake's delight, was sitting on the coffee table itself. John was clicking his lighter boredly.

"Honey, aren't you supposed to be at school?" Mrs. Drake asked her eldest son.

"Bobby, who is this guy?" Mr. Drake asked nervously, motioning towards Logan

"Mom, Dad, This is… Professor Logan." Bobby said with false brightness.

They stared at him, still skeptical.

"There's something I need to tell you." Bobby said nervously, running a hand through his dirty blonde hair.

"Is everything okay, honey?" Mrs. Drake asked, glancing at all of us.

"I'm a mutant." Bobby blurted out suddenly.

His family stared at him in a mixture of shock and disgust.

I wanted nothing more than to zap some sense into them.

"So… when did you first know… that you were a… um…" Mrs. Drake stuttered, clutching her cup of tea in shaking hands.

"A mutant?" John finished harshly, with a click of his lighter.

"Could you please stop that?" Mrs. Drake ground out, glancing at his lighter. John raised his eyebrows, as if to challenge her, but I nudged him and he grudgingly pocketed his beloved Zippo.

"You have to understand; we thought Bobby was going to a school for the gifted." Mr. Drake tried to explain, not looking up from his hands.

"Bobby is gifted." Rogue insisted, coming to her boyfriend's defense.

"We know that. We just didn't realize that he was…" Mr. Drake started.

"We still love you, Bobby. It's just that… this mutant problem is very…" Mrs. Drake cut off her husband.

"What mutant problem?" Logan asked, clearly offended.

"Complicated." she finished.

There was an awkward silence.

"Excuse me, what exactly are you a professor of, Mr. Logan?" Mr. Drake asked curiously, eyeing my feral mentor with disdain.

"Art." Logan answered easily.

I almost lost it then and there, but I quickly turned my giggles into a coughing fit. John helped by patting my gently on the back.

The air was thick with tension.

"Well, you should see what Bobby can do." Rogue said, trying to lighten the mood.

The Drakes look at Bobby.

He reached across the table, and they flinched, pulling back.

Bobby smiled and gently touched his mother's teacup.

She turned it over and the frozen tea plopped onto the saucer.

"Bobby…" she whispered, staring at her child in disbelief.

"I can do a lot more than that. " Bobby said quietly, glancing at his mother.

Ronnie suddenly stood up and stormed up the stairs.

"Ronny!" Mrs. Drake called, trying in vain to call back her younger son.

We heard a door slam.

"Oh, God, this is all my fault." Mrs. Drake said, holding her head in her hands.

"Actually, they've discovered that the males are the ones who carry mutant genes and pass them on to the next generation, so actually… it's his fault." John explained, pointing to Mr. Drake with a smug grin.

Mr. Drake looked mortified.

"And you… you're all "gifted?" Mrs. Drake asked the rest of us uneasily.

Something beeped to my left as I saw Logan pull the disk out of his pocket.

"That's for me." he said, walking outside through the sliding glass door.

"Bobby, have you tried...not being a mutant?" Mrs. Drake asked hopefully after a few moments of silence.

Now I wanted to kill her.

"Mrs. Drake, have you tried not being a human?" I asked brightly, looking up at her.

"Excuse me?" she asked, shocked.

The sliding glass door opened and Logan stalked back in with a funny look on his face.

"We have to go, now." he said tersely

"Why? What's going on?" I asked, hopping off my perch and following him

"NOW." he repeated.

There was the familiar SNIKT as he extended his adamantium claws and opened the door.

The five of us stepped out onto the porch to the sound of multiple guns being cocked.

------x------x-------x------x------

Whadja think? R & R!


	28. Pyro's Wrath

A/N- Apparently I did some God bashing in Chappie 23. I wasn't trying to be offensive. I did a lot of research on sexual abuse victims and I got one of the highest grades in my Psychology class so I could have believable insight in Anna's head. I knew what I was doing before I wrote the chappie. I'm not a God hater, I'm a Jew. Jesus., Anyway, here's the fun stuff! Enjoy!

Chapter 28

Pyro's Wrath

Two cops stepped from each side of the porch, and cocked their guns at us. Two more cops emerging from cruisers on the lawn.

"Ronnie." Bobby said angrily.

The cops advanced towards us.

"What's going on here? Logan asked as calmly as he could.

Bobby and Rogue looked scared to death. John flicked his lighter open and shut, assessing the situation.

"DROP THE KNIVES AND PUT YOUR HANDS IN THE AIR." the cop instructed.

"This is just a misunderstanding." Logan said, glancing around.

"PUT THE KNIVES DOWN!"

"I can't. Look." Logan raised his arms to show the claws were attached to his hands.

BANG!

Rogue shrieked and hit the deck.

The bullet slammed into his forehead and Logan crumpled to the ground.

"YOU SHOT HIM, YOU FUCKING PIECE OF SHIT!" I shouted, shaking with rage.

The gun was still smoking.

Bobby slowly started to kneel, hands behind his head.

But not John and I.

John angrily began flicking his lighter faster and faster.

"Get on the ground. We don't wanna hurt you." the cop said.

John looked up at him.

"You know all those dangerous mutants you hear about on the news?" he asked quietly.

"I'm the worst one."

I watched in horrid fascination as John lowered his hand and flicked the lighter—the small flame quickly grew into streams of fire, one shooting to the right, one to the left—one racing behind him, through the house, blasting toward the cops in the living room, knocking them down.

Two panicked cops dove for cover.

John narrowed his eyes.

Streaks of flames hit the exhaust pipes of the cruisers. The cars explode, tumbling and spinning in the air, cops running for cover.

Only one cruiser was left, surrounded by swirling flames.

Police officers tried to call for backup on their radios.

"John, what are you doing?" I asked frantically, grabbing for his lighter.

He shrugged me off and glanced at the remaining cruiser.

"John, stop!" I pleaded, dropping to the ground near his feet.

I glanced over at Rogue as I saw her tug off her gloves, yank up the leg of John's pants and grab his bared skin.

John's eyes widened as he realized what was happening. He gasped and dropped the lighter. I snatched it up and stuck it in the back pocket of my jeans.

Stumbling, he slumped to the ground, as if the wind were knocked out of him.

Rogue held up a hand and concentrated on the fire.

The flames began to recede, leaving nothing but smoldering debris. Rogue let out an exhausted and relieved sigh.

We got to our feet. I bent over and grabbed John's arm. He groaned as he stood up, staring at Rogue in horror.

I heard something fall near my feet.

The bullet from Logan's forehead.

His eyes opened and he stood up, the wound now completely healed. He cracked his neck and glared at John.

BOOM!

Thunder echoed from above and the lawn was blasted by heavy winds.

We watched the _Blackbird_ descend from dark clouds. It landed in the street and the ramp lowered to the ground.

As we walked past the cops, Logan glared at them, defiantly, daring them to do something.

They did nothing.

------x------x-------x------x------

Whadja think? R & R!


	29. Turbulence Hanscom and Blue Chicks Oh My

A/N- I am so sorry for the wait! I HATE SCHOOL! Here's the next chappie. You guys keep me going! Enjoy!

Chapter 29

Turbulence, Hanscom and Blue Chicks, Oh My!

We ran up the ramp quickly.

As I walked down the aisle to my seat, I noticed a blue man- that's right, a blue man already strapped in.

"_Guten Tag, Fraulien_." he said to me jovially.

"_Guten Abend_." I returned, as I took the seat behind him, the tiny bit of German I could actually pronounce finally coming in handy.

"Who the hell are you?" Logan demanded charmingly.

"Kurt Wagner, but in the Munich circus I was known as "The Incredible Nightcraw-"

"Aw, save it. Storm?" he growled.

"We're out of here." Storm said, pulling on a lever.

I glanced at Bobby, who was sitting across from me. He looked horribly dejected.

"Hey, Popsicle." I said.

He turned to face me.

"That was pretty ballsy, what you did back there. I don't think I could have done that. You should be proud of who you are." I said, trying to be helpful.

"Oprah…" I heard Logan say from the front.

"Logan, shut up." I yelled.

Suddenly, beeping began to echo throughout the aircraft.

"I've got two signals approaching." Storm said worriedly.

The radio crackled.

"Unidentified aircraft, you are ordered to descend 20,000 feet and return with our escort to Hanscom Air Force Base. Failure to comply will result in the use of extreme force."

"Wow. Somebody's angry." Storm said, glancing at Logan.

Logan glared at John.

"Yeah, I wonder why." he said sarcastically.

"Repeat: You are ordered to descend 20,000 feet and return with our escort to Hanscom Air Force Base." the radio insisted.

"What are we going to do?" Rogue said nervously.

"Wait. They're falling back." Storm said, as she looked out the window briefly.

A loud beep went off.

"They're marking us."

"What?" Logan demanded

"They're going to fire. Hang on!" Storm instructed.

The _Blackbird_ dove wildly as Storm tried to shake off the fighters as the F-16s each fire a missile. We banked hard, and barrel rolled, just barely dodging the exploding missiles.

The fighter jets were still on our trail.

"Please don't do that again." I heard John say. I could tell that he was airsick.

"I agree." Logan said, sounding sick as well.

We dodged for a few more minutes, careening about in the air, and I even I started feeling funny.

"Don't we have any weapons in this heap?" Logan yelled.

The sky outside suddenly turned dark, and I knew Storm was using her abilities to do so. Dark rumbling clouds formed in front of the _Blackbird_. Lightning flashed.

And then we headed straight into the eye of the growing storm, the F-16s hot on our tail.

I watched out the window in astonishment as wispy clouds begin to swirl, faster and faster, twisting into long, thin funnels. One formed, and another, until the sky was filled with roaring tornados. They writhed like giant serpents, allowing the _Blackbird_ to pass between them.

Most of the F-16s weren't as lucky- they darted and snaked about, trying to avoid Storm's wrath.

All but one of the F-16s got sucked into a tornado.

The remaining F-16 banked and rolled, avoiding the tornados, quickly gaining on the _Blackbird_.

Suddenly, the clouds around the F-16 begin to swirl, until it was completely encased in a long dark tunnel- a tornado stretching across the sky.

The F-16 began to roll wildly inside the tornado, losing control- but still managing to fire two more missiles, just before the tornado bent and hurled the F-16 to the ground.

The pilot ejected, but the missiles continued on their warpath, easily passing through the storm.

The two missiles were still rushing towards us at breakneck speed. One veered off the course and sputtered, exploded in the air about one hundred yards from my window.

There was still one more.

"Jean?" I heard Storm say worriedly.

Ahead of me, I could see Rogue was frantically trying to buckle herself in. She pushed one buckle in and the opposite one popped out. She tried another. Finally, two held. She pressed the third in. She put the fourth and final buckle into the mechanism, and all three fell out. She tried again, looking nervously towards the cockpit.

And suddenly-

BOOM!

The missile exploded on the tail of the _Blackbird_ somewhere. The jolt shook me. My head pounding, I closed my eyes.

A large hole had been blown in the roof of the jet. It decompressed and shrieking wind drowned out everyone's screams.

And Rogue was instantly ripped out of her seat and sucked out of the hole.

"ROGUE!" Bobby yelled, trying to unbuckle his seatbelt.

"No, don't! I'll get her!" Kurt said from in front of me.

BAMF!

The smell of sulfur filled the air, and a blue cloud was left where Kurt had been sitting.

Rogue and Kurt suddenly reappeared, with that same BAMF noise as before, in a haze of blue smoke and fell to the ground.

Storm and Jean were working frantically to stabilize the jet, but so far it was useless.

Through the windshield, the Earth was rising to meet us at a dizzying speed. Storm strained, trying to pull us out of the nosedive.

The altimeter flashed our descent in red- 3,000 feet, 2,500 feet, and then 2,000 feet.

The plane was getting lower, the ground rushing towards us still.

This is it, I thought, eyes clenched shut. I'm gonna die in a freakin' plane crash. Great.

Suddenly, I could hear the creaking and groaning of the metal from behind my seat. I turned around to look and saw that the hole in the roof was bending and twisting, slowly repairing itself.

The screaming wind died down to a whistle, as the hole closed completely.

Then, the falling jet began to slow.

"Jean?" Storm said, terror evident in her normally calm voice.

"It's not me." Jean protested.

The ground was getting closer.

And with a slight jolt, we stopped.

I hung there, straining against my seatbelt, which was digging painfully into my chest and shoulders.

We glanced around and stared at each other, confused and shocked.

Then I looked out the windshield.

Below us, in a forest clearing, were two familiar figures staring up at us.

Magneto and Mystique.


	30. To Tents and Beans and Balls

A/N I'm doing all I can to write during the week. Thank you for not giving up on me. I hope you enjoy this next chapter. I based it off of one of my camping experiences.

Chapter 30

To Tents and Beans and Balls

Grownup talk, that's what Logan said they were doing.

Since we were kids, the four of us got sent to go set up the seven tents, one for Rogue and I, one for John and Bobby, one for Storm and Jean, one for Mystique, one for Magneto, one for Kurt, and one for Logan.

Bobby finished setting up a tent, and walked over to Rogue, who was trying to light a small portable stove.

John was sitting apart from us, staring at his hands and I remembered his Zippo in my back pocket.

I whistled and he looked up. I tossed his lighter to him and he caught it single handedly. As soon as the lighter made contact with his flesh, he started flicking it.

Rogue shot me a dirty look.

"You could help, you know. " she said to John.

As soon as the words were out of her mouth, the stove erupted into a large flame. Bobby gasped and jumped away, and then shot John a dirty look.

I watched the exchange between the two boys and found it rather amusing, but Rogue stalked into the tent, clearly not stoked.

"I'll go see what's up with her." I said to Bobby, and followed Rogue into the tent, zipping it up behind me.

"I swear, I don't know if those two are best friends or worst enemies some days. They're gonna kill each other one day." she grumbled, flopping down onto a sleeping bag.

"Maybe." I said, sitting down next to her, pulling out my black camisole and boy shorts for a third night in a row. I had already decided I was gonna burn them when I got back to the mansion.

I stripped off my shirt and pulled the camisole over my head quickly, when I heard a BANG and something that sounded wet hit my side of the tent, quickly followed by shouting and swearing.

"WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON HERE?" I heard Logan shout.

"I DIDN'T DO IT! I SWEAR! IT WAS BOBBY!" Came John's immediate disclaimer.

"Jesus Christ." I muttered.

"YOU'RE THE ONE WITH THE LIGHTER! HOW COULD I HAVE DONE IT?" Bobby argued.

"YOU TOOK IT FROM ME LIKE YOU ALWAYS DO!" John insisted.

"YOU WERE TRYING TO MAKE THE BEANS COOK FASTER!" Bobby yelled.

"WELL, IT WORKED, DIDN'T IT?" John shot back.

"THE CAN EXPLODED, YOU FREAKING IDIOT!" Bobby cried.

"I DIDN'T SAY THEY STAYED IN THE CAN, ICEBALLS!" John shouted.

This continued for about another five minutes.

I finished getting changed, waited for Rogue to finish, and went outside to see what had happened.

"…And in the mean time, I'm separating you two. Rogue, you go with Bobby to his tent. Anna, I'm sorry I'm sticking you with this bean-flinging psycho in the bean-flung tent." Logan instructed us.

I glanced at the tent where beans were trailing down the side.

"That's your side of the tent." I said, rolling my eyes and crossing my arms over my chest.

"Before you guys go to bed, I wanna remind you of something. When God made teenage boys, he didn't plan far enough ahead, and therefore only gave them enough blood to operate either the brain or the penis at a time, but not both. Use your brain, not your balls." Logan said, glaring at Bobby and John.

"Thanks Logan. God only knows what I might have done if we hadn't had this chat." John said sarcastically.

I shoved John and stalked back to the tent with him following behind.

-----x-----x-----x-----x-----

Whadja think? Review, my darlings, REVIEW!


	31. Late Night Chat: The Sequel!

A/N- Alright, this was fun for me to write. I'm currently encountering a titch of writer's block, so bear with me. Thank you to all of my reviewers and readers. As of this chapter, I have over 13,000 hits and just about 200 reviews. I hope you enjoy the chappie.

Chapter 31

Late Night Chat: The Sequel

After stubbornly refusing to sleep on the bean-scented side of the tent for nearly ten minutes, I was finally reduced to threatening John with castration and he immediately gave up and relinquished the bean free side to me.

"It's not a big deal, John." I said, sitting down as he threw his shirt to the corner of the tent.

"Then why can't you do it?" he asked, crossing his arms over his chest.

"'Cause it's funnier this way." I explained innocently with only a hint of sadism in my voice.

"You're a psycho."

"Then why'd you kiss me if I'm such a psycho?" I blurted out before I could even think.

John raised an eyebrow at me. "What are you talking about?" he asked, not looking at me.

"You kissed me. Last night." I reminded him. "What was that about?"

He sat up and ran his fingers through his hair, a gesture I noticed he did when he was nervous.

"I… I don't know."

"Oh."

He groaned.

"I didn't mean it like that."

"Then what the hell did you mean John? I don't even know what I'm supposed to feel for you right now after your little power display on Bobby's porch!" I cried, sitting up on the blanket.

"I wanted to protect you!"

"John, what the name of J.R.R. Tolkien are you babbling about?" I demanded, staring at him incredulously.

"Did you know that besides Bobby, you are the only person in the whole goddamned world that doesn't take me at face value?" he asked, his face inches from mine.

"John, no one takes you at face-" I started nervously.

"Oh, God, sweetheart, spare me the bullshit. Even Rogue does it. Why did you give me a chance? Three days ago I could have killed you."

"So what? You can still kill me. You scared the hell out of me today." I said.

"Well, sorry. Should I have let you get shot?" John sneered.

"I was in no danger-"

"THAT PIG SHOT LOGAN IN THE HEAD!" John reminded me angrily.

"But-"

"But nothing. End of discussion." John said decisively.

"No! Not 'end of discussion'. John." I said, leaning forward and resting my forehead on my knees.

"Then what do you want to talk about?" he asked indifferently, flopping back on the blanket.

"About everyone taking you at face value. That's not true." I said.

"Like who?"

"Logan."

"Logan?" John smirked, raising an eyebrow.

"It was his idea for me to try to talk to you in detention that day, you know."

"Why, 'cause I'm the resident fuck-up?"

"You're not a fuck-up, John. You shouldn't say things like that." I said, reaching down to touch his hand.

"Why the hell not? It's true, isn't it?" John insisted.

"Stop feeling sorry for yourself." I instructed, rather absently, cupping his cheek in my palm. I could feel a tiny bit of stubble along his jawline and I felt a strange urge to kiss it.

So I did.

"You don't have to be the bad guy, John." I said softly, pulling away and looking him in the eyes.

"Jesus Christ, Anna, you have no idea what you're doing to me." John groaned, lowering his mouth to mine, kissing me gently at first, and then growing more aggressive.

"You sound like someone out of a bad romance novel, John." I said breathlessly when he finally pulled away.

"It's better than sounding like someone out of a bad porno." John told me.

"John!" I exclaimed, swatting his arm.

"I know, I'm sorry. I know what you're going to say." he said, holding up his hands as a sign of surrender.

"What?"

"There's no such thing as a bad porno."

"Not true." I countered, laughing.

"Since when do you watch pornos?" John asked curiously.

"You know that crap that's on at like, 2:30 in the morning on HBO? It was like, one time, after me and Kitty had watched _Captain Corelli's Mandolin_." I explained, laughing at the memory of Kitty's appalled and disgusted face.

"You and Kitty watched a porno." John repeated incredulously.

"Yeah, and then we stripped down to our underwear and threw baby oil at each other, and finally, had a pillow fight." I said as seriously as I could.

"Really?" John asked happily.

"Yeah! Oh, uh… no." I answered, watching his face fall in disappointment.

"Man…" John mumbled.

"Jeez, what is it with guys and lesbians?" I muttered.

"Well-" John started to explain.

"I don't wanna know, John!" I said, covering my ears with my hands.

"You asked."

"It was rhetorical!"

"Whatever." John said, grinning as he flopped down on the blanket next to me.

"John?" I asked after a few minutes.

"Yeah?" he responded sleepily.

"You said you were from Australia, right?" I asked.

"Melbourne, yeah. Why?"

"Why don't you have an accent?"

"I do. I just don't use it." he answered.

"Why not?" I prodded.

"Because the first night I was here, Bobby called me "The Crocodile Hunter" and then he wouldn't stop saying the word "Vegemite" whenever he had the opportunity. Which was pretty often, because he's the only roommate I've ever had." John explained.

"So you adopted an American accent because of it?"

"Yup."

"That's too bad." I sighed, lying down next to him, burying my face in his warm shoulder.

"Why?" he asked drowsily.

"Because Australian accents are pretty sexy."

-----x-----x-----x-----x-----x-----

Whadja think? Aussies are pretty hot, right? Hit the shiny and tell me what you thunk.


	32. Bobby Drake, Human Alarm Clock

A/N- Just a transitional chappie. I'm sorry if you speak Spanish. Enjoy!

Chapter 32

Bobby Drake, Human Alarm Clock

For the second time in less than twelve hours, something was lobbed at my tent.

Logan's voice.

"C'mon, let's get movin', kiddos. The _Blackbird_ is up and runnin'!" Logan shouted, his voice piercing the tranquility of the peaceful morning like an air horn.

"John… we have to get up." I said, not moving from his arms.

"Give it back." he muttered.

"Are you even awake?" I asked, nudging his shoulder.

"That's my sock, Bobby. Take it out of the spaghetti."

"John, your sock isn't in the spaghetti. Get up." I said, stifling a laugh.

"Yes it is. Bobby wants to eat my socks." he whined petulantly, eyes shut.

"John." I laughed, pulling his arm.

"_Donde esta la agua? Mi vaca es en fuego_!."

"Jesus Christ." I muttered, unzipping the tent flap and poking my head out. I saw Bobby already collapsing the tent he and Rogue had shared.

"Bobby, since when does John speak Spanish?" I called.

"John's not getting up?"

"How'd you know?"

"I'm his alarm clock."

"Can you do something about it? He's accusing you of wanting to ingest his socks. And something about a flaming cow." I explained.

"Not again." Bobby groaned.

I raised an eyebrow, but decided not to press the matter.

"John, get up!"

No reply.

"John!"

Still silence.

"Rogue and Anna are mud wrestling!"

"WHAT?" I shouted, punching him in the arm.

"That usually works." Bobby explained sheepishly, rubbing his arm where I had struck him.

"Gee, thanks Bobby. I'm glad to help where I can." I said, trying to glare at him but failing miserably.

----x-----x-----x-----x-----x-----

"Where is the water? My cow is on fire!"


	33. Natural Born Killers

Chapter 33

Natural Born Killers

When we all finally got on the _Blackbird_, we were able to explore the rest of the jet. There was an upstairs, a kitchen, and even a few furnished rooms. There was a prep and planning room with a TV and DVD player. Bobby and Rogue were staring longingly at a uniform hanging inside a sleek locker in the back of the room. Logan was zipping up a few feet away.

"Where's ours?" Bobby asked, eyeing the leather enviously.

"On order. Should arrive in a few years." Logan replied sardonically, cracking his neck.

Logan shut the locker and stalked down the steps. John was standing next to me, flicking his Zippo, as usual.

I noticed Rogue standing next to Bobby, glancing around. Her eyes settled on Magneto and Mystique, sitting on a bench in front of some cubbies nearby. They were staring at her and whispering to each other. They suddenly stopped.

Magneto grinned.

"We love what you've done with your hair." he said jovially, as if the Liberty Island incident a year ago was sherry and giggles now.

Rogue glared at him and made to yank off her glove, but Bobby stopped her quickly, grabbing her arm.

"C'mon., let's go." he coaxed, leading my pissed off friend away.

John casually walked over and plunked down on the bench a few feet away from our enemies. He motioned me over and I reluctantly followed, hesitant to sit next to the people who had attempted to kill one of my closest friends.

"So, they say you're the bad guy." John said conversationally, snapping his lighter.

"Is that what they say?" Magneto asked, seeming offended, raising his bushy grey eyebrows.

John nodded.

"That's a dorky-looking helmet. What's it for?" he asked curiously, gesturing to the red and purple helmet that sat in one of the cubbies behind the bench.

"This "dorky-looking helmet" is the only thing that's going to protect me from the real bad guys." Magneto explained cryptically.

A few awkward moments of silence passed.

"What's your name?" Magneto asked John, as he amused himself by snatching his lighter away from him.

"John." John answered, watching his lighter longingly as Magneto flicked it open and a tiny flame formed.

"What's your real name, John?"

John hesitated, glancing at me.

"Pyro." he said finally, drawing the flame away from the open lighter and creating a small fireball in his hand.

"Quite a talent you have there, Pyro." Magneto said, his eyes shining. I could see the fire glinting the reflection of his blue eyes as he took in the sight greedily.

"I can only manipulate the fire. I can't create it." John said, with a hint of dejection and anger in his voice.

"You are a god among insects. Never let anyone tell you different." Magneto said.

'This guy sounds like Gandalf or something. Maybe Yoda,' I thought, staring down at my hands, hoping Magneto wouldn't put me through a questioning too.

Yeah, right.

"And you?" Magneto questioned pleasantly.

"Anna." I said curtly.

"What's your codename, Anna?" Mystique spoke up, frustrated. She had clearly had her fill of idiotic teenagers for the day.

"I… I don't know. I haven't been able to come up with anything." I said, feeling stupid. I had never been able to come up with something that didn't sound incredibly childish.

"What can you do, my dear?"

I held out my hand and made a blue lightning ball and twirled it around my fingers a few times. I blinked and it guttered down and died.

Magneto didn't say anything to me. He just glanced at Mystique, who returned the look.

Something was up. And I didn't like it.


	34. John and a Piano

A/N- I am so sorry for the delay. I got grounded for three weeks and I nearly threw myself in front of traffic. Not really. Thank you for all your reviews, they are amayyyzing and I love you all. This chappie is just a bit of fluff, because I'm going to bed.

Chapter 34

John and a Piano, Or Bored

"John, I don't like this. They keep looking at us." I whispered, nudging him in the side.

"Chill out. Everything's fine." he assured me.

"I don't think so." I countered, resting my head on his shoulder.

"They can't do anything to us. Relax."

I sighed and curled up on the seat. I rested the back of my head on John's left thigh and stared at the ceiling. I could see John's hands out of the corners of my eyes, deftly flicking the lighter.

"John, my head is going to explode one day if you keep that up." I groaned, swiping it away from him.

"I get bored easily."

"If only there was someone you could talk to." I said pointedly, running my finger over the lighter. The metal was tarnished and worn, the shark's red mouth chipped in a few spots.

"Could I have that back?" John asked, tapping my forehead.

"I don't have a lighter. I wanna play with it," I said, flicking it open. "Hey, that _is _pretty fun. And here I thought you just did it to annoy the fuck out of people." I teased, handing the lighter back to John.

"That's just an added bonus. I actually find that flicking this is very cathartic. It helps me think."

"You're weird." I laughed, taking his hand and measuring it against mine. To my total unsurprise, it dwarfed mine. His hands were long and elegant, like a pianist's.

John and a piano… now I knew I was bored.


	35. Jean Explains It All

A/N- I often have the "Dumbass Fight" with my friend Tallis. But the whole "Dumbass Fight" reminds me of an episode of Scrubs, where, instead of "Dumbass", they say, "Jerk". Anyway, enjoy the chappie.

Chapter 35

Jean Explains It All

"So where're we headed?" John asked Jean, as she ascended the steps and glared disapproving at our positions.

"Alkali Lake." she answered tersely.

"Didn't Logan just go there?" I groaned. "Why can't we just go back to the mansion instead?"

"Because Stryker's base is there. And we have reason to believe he has some of the children." Jean explained, opening the locker and grabbing a jacket.

"Sweet! Do we get to help?" John asked enthusiastically, his eyes lighting up like a child's.

"John, it is not "sweet", as you so chose to describe it. They could be badly hurt. And no, you guys are staying here."

"Jean, c'mon! Why do we have to stay here? We've done the Danger Room, like, a bazillion times!" I complained, picking my head up out of John's lap to look her in the eyes.

"You simply aren't ready." she said, zipping up the jacket and heading back down the steps.

We stared at her retreating figure.

"I hate that woman sometimes." I grumbled, nestling back into John's lap.

I heard him chuckle.

"What? I want to do something. Those bastards tried to kill us." I said, cracking my knuckles.

"Not us, just Bobby." John pointed out.

"John! That's terrible! He's your best friend." I cried, slapping his stomach.

"Jesus, it was a joke!" he said.

"You're a dumbass." I said.

"I'm not a dumbass, you're a dumbass, dumbass."

"I'm not a dumbass, you're a dumbass, dumbass."

"Hey, you're both dumbasses! Now get yourselves downstairs." Logan instructed from the doorway, where he had obviously seen the whole exchange.

"He's a dumbass." John whispered to me as we followed a few feet behind Logan.

"Hey, I heard that, dumbass!" Logan said. "If I hear that word one more time, I'm gonna rip you a new one. Got it, bub?"

"Yes sir." John answered meekly.

"You are so whipped… dumbass." I laughed.


	36. The Plan… That Doesn’t Apply To Us

Chapter 36

The Plan… That Doesn't Apply To Us

So the plan was really cool sounding. Too bad we had nothing to do with it.

Bobby, Rogue, John and I were left in the _Blackbird_ while everyone else got to go have fun blowing shit up.

About two hours had passed since the adults had left us, with only a, "Don't touch anything."

Rogue was lying down with her head on Bobby's stomach, looking very comfortable. I was perched on a counter, humming _Dance of the Robe_ from _Aida_, much to everyone else's displeasure.

"This blows." John groaned, from where he was slumped in a chair.

"John, there's nothing we can do about it." Bobby pointed out glumly.

John snorted and leaned back even further, if possible, in the reclined seat.

"I'm gonna see if there's a DVD or something." I announced, jumping off the counter.

"Knock yourself out, dollface." John called sarcastically as I pounded up the stairs.


	37. Where's John?

A/N- Apparently, y'all were disappointed by my last chappie. Lo siento. I hope you enjoy.

Chapter 37

Where's John?

About five minutes later, having found nothing that was good in the DVD collection, I went back down the stairs.

"Sorry guys, all I could find was boring stuff-"

The room was dead silent.

"Where's John?" I asked, glancing around the room.

"He… went for a walk." Bobby said quietly.

I swore quietly and yanked on a light jacket I found in one of the lockers.

"What're you doing, Anna?" Rogue called.

"I'm gonna go find John. It's colder than fuck out there." I explained, walking back in to the control panel in the cockpit. I hit a few buttons until the ramp lowered.

"Anna, you shouldn't-"

"I'll be fine!" I called back, walking outside.

Fuck, it was freezing. What the hell was John thinking?

I saw him about half a mile ahead of me, his figure standing out like a sore thumb in the snow.

"JOHN!" I shouted, the cold rushing down my throat and crushing my lungs.

He didn't answer.

I began to jog, and then sprint, and I finally broke out into a full out run.

"JOHN!" I called again, but he didn't answer me.

I was finally a few feet behind him.

"John, why are you ignoring me?" I asked, hurt.

"Go back." he answered curtly.

"What?"

"I said, go back." he repeated, as though he were speaking to a small child.

"John, it's fucking freezing out here, let's go." I coaxed, confused.

"I'm not going back."

"What are you talking about?" I spat, exasperated.

"I'm not going back! Are you fucking deaf?" he shouted.

"Why are you talking to me like this?" I asked quietly.

"You don't get it, do you? I don't belong. I never have. I never will. Go back and tell them I got mauled by a polar bear or something."

"Don't say that." I said, reaching out to put my hand on his shoulder. He jerked back, and pushed my arm away.

"Stop it. Don't you get it? I don't belong with anyone at Xavier's. Especially you. You saw the look Jean gave me. Everyone thinks I'm a piece of shit and I'm not worth it. I'm out of here."

"Don't you dare walk away from me, John Allerdyce. You said you didn't ever want pity, so don't you even _dare_ to put me in this position."

He continued walking away.

That did it.

I was freezing my ass off, I was hungrier than fuck and now the one person I could talk to was deserting me.

"YOU FUCKING CHILD!" I screamed, and I dove at him, and we flew through a snow bank. I straddled his legs and started hitting his chest, angry tears streaming down my face.

"Stop it! What the fuck do you think you're doing?" he yelled, grabbing my wrists and flipping me over so I was underneath him.

"You goddamn child! It's always about you! Get off of me!" I yelled, wiggling desperately under him, the familiar sensation of being trapped overcoming my senses completely.

"Stop moving! I'm not going-"

"NO!"

I brought my knee up and slammed it into his thigh as hard as I could.

He rolled off me.

"Jesus Christ! Are you trying to emasculate me?" he groaned.

I lay there, the snow seeping through my clothes, not moving.

"Anna?"

John's face appeared next to mine, his brow wrought with concern.

"Are you okay?"

"Why are you doing this to me?" I asked him brokenly.


	38. Goodbye, Love

Chapter 38

Goodbye, Love

"Doing what?"

"You're leaving! Why the hell are you leaving? Where are you gonna go, John? Back to Australia?" I snapped. Maybe if I made him angry enough, he'd tell me something.

He didn't answer.

It dawned.

"You unimaginable bastard. You're going with _him_, aren't you?"

Silence.

"AREN'T YOU?" I shouted.

"Anna, listen to me-"

"Don't touch me! Don't you dare touch me! You fucking jerk! You're so blind to everyone but yourself! You don't understand it, do you?" I yelled.

Silence.

"I need you, John. Please don't go." I begged, throwing my arms around his neck, tears in my eyes.

"Don't say that. You don't need me-" he started.

I cut him off and kissed him on the mouth, hard. I was torn between rage and passion. I was so confused.

"Please come back with me John. Please." I whispered against the warm skin of his throat.

"I can't." he said hoarsely.

I tensed and pushed him away.

"Anna, goddamnit. Listen to me." he pleaded.

"Fuck you." I growled, and stalked away.


End file.
